Water for Ecosystems: Contingent Valuation in Colorado River Delta and Analysis of Western U.S. Water Market Activity

Abstract

Extensive diversions of water for agricultural, municipal, and industrial uses have left freshwater and riparian ecosystems disturbed and degraded. In order to maintain, protect, and restore these ecosystems and the benefits that they provide, several challenges must be overcome. The first is to ensure that the non-market benefits that these ecosystems provide are valued and considered in decision-making processes. The second is to physically secure water for these imperiled ecosystems. This thesis addresses both of these challenges by: 1) valuing the ecosystem service benefits of water-dependent ecosystems through a contingent valuation study in the Colorado River Delta, Mexico and 2) conducting an econometric analysis to understand water market activity in the western United States and to identify components that lead to higher levels water market activity.