Simulation of Water Quality Management Policies

The situation considered is a series of water users located along a river,the river being the sole source of water intake and the only place in which to discharge wastewater. For a given set of conditions, a management policy such as effluent standard or charge can be set which reflects the basin-wide economic optimum. As these conditions change with time, however, a previously established policy may give rise to a misallocation of allowable waste discharge levels, resulting in a current actual treatment cost greater than that determined to be optimal under the new conditions. Using the prototype computer simulation program written for this study, these actual and optimal solutions are compared. Misallocations were noted in actual performance relative to optimal solutions. Under an effluent charge policy, resulting treatment cost surpluses and deficits were partially offset by charge deficits and surpluses, respectively. Under a standards policy, there were no charges to offset misallocations.