A Feasibility Study - Aaltodoc - Aalto-yliopisto

3.2 Water usage and price
Water usage varies greatly in different countries. On average, it has been recommended
that males should drink 3,7 liters and women 2,7 liters per day. This includes water
from beverages and also from food (Panel on Dietary Reference 2005). These amounts
are the ones that we require to survive, but the amount of water we actually use is much
larger, especially in the developing world.
In Europe the average consumption per day is about 200 – 300 liters per person, while
in the United States it is as high as 575 liters per person. In poorer countries the amount
of available water is much less. For example in Mozambique the daily use is below 10
liters per person. It is difficult to set the bar for adequate water supply as situations vary
some much between countries, but a level of 50 liters per day per person is considered
to be a threshold for water poverty (UNDP 2006). A presentation of the average use of
water per person per day in different countries is given in Figure 9a.
“In developed nations … water is virtually free to consumers” (Mosey 2009, p. 20).
This is not so in developing countries, where in some cases there simply is not enough
water and thus the existing water resources experience a price rise. The prices vary
significantly in different countries and also depending on the production method.
Generally it can be stated that public utilities are the cheapest producers with a price of
roughly 0,5 US$/m³ while with e.g. truckers the price can go up to 6 US$/m³ (UNDP
2006). Figure 9c highlights the differences in price between various water producers.
Water price varies between countries and inside countries as well. The price also
depends on the consumed amount of water and some countries include a sewage fee and
taxes for water. Therefore comparing water prices even in one city can be challenging.
Still, in order to have a general picture of the price of water, Table 1 presents water
prices in various countries. Water produced in secluded areas, e.g. in islands can be
much more expensive than presented in Table 1.
Table 1. Water prices in various countries.
Australia
Chile
South Africa
The US (mainland)
Hawaii (The US)
Canary Islands (Spain)
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Price (US$/m³)
1 (ABS 2012); 2 (Larrain, Schaeffer 2010); 3 (Water Raphsody 2010); 4 (EPA 2009); 5 (Department of Water
Supply 2011); 6 (Spanish Property Company 2006)