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Improved source, improved quality? Demand for drinking water quality in rural India

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  • Jessoe, Katrina

Abstract

This paper tests the hypothesis that the expansion of improved drinking water supplies in rural India reduced household expenditure on water quality, offsetting some of the quality benefits from source protection. I estimate demand for in-home treatment using geological characteristics to predict a household's drinking water source. The probability of treatment and in particular boiling reduces by 18–27 percentage points in response to source protection, offsetting 4% of the water quality gains and saving households 0.5–1% in monthly expenditure. Behavioral choices partly counteract the water quality gains from source protection.

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  • Jessoe, Katrina, 2013. "Improved source, improved quality? Demand for drinking water quality in rural India," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 66(3), pages 460-475.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jeeman:v:66:y:2013:i:3:p:460-475
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jeem.2013.05.001
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    Cited by:

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    3. Zhou, Li & Turvey, Calum G., 2018. "Drinking water and off-farm labour supply: between-gender and within-gender bias," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 62(1), January.
    4. Vanaja, Shiuli, 2021. "Are People Making Correct Choices? Drivers of Water Source Choices in Rural Jharkhand, India," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315156, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    5. Rajapakshe, Sisira & Termansen, Mette & Paavola, Jouni, 2022. "Valuing Water Service Improvements through Revealed Preference: Averting Behaviour Method," MPRA Paper 115623, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Mikhail Miklyaev & Alan S. Wyatt & Ridha Drebika & Owotomiwa (Christiana) Olubamiro & Glenn P. Jenkins, 2024. "Financial And Economic Appraisal Of Water Supply Desalination Technologies And Reuse Initiatives:Integrating Modern Portfolio Theory Into Strategic Water Resource Allocation," Development Discussion Papers 2024-02 Jel Classificatio, JDI Executive Programs.
    7. Alexandra K. Shannon & Faraz Usmani & Subhrendu K. Pattanayak & Marc Jeuland, 2019. "The Price of Purity: Willingness to Pay for Air and Water Purification Technologies in Rajasthan, India," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 73(4), pages 1073-1100, August.
    8. Yasuharu Shimamura & Satoshi Shimizutani & Shimpei Taguchi & Hiroyuki Yamada, 2021. "Economic Valuation of Safe Water from New Boreholes in Rural Zambia: A Coping Cost Approach with Estimates of Internal Rate of Return," Keio-IES Discussion Paper Series 2021-009, Institute for Economics Studies, Keio University.

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