The contextual meaning of sustainable development: the case of the Dutch drinking water sector

The concept of sustainable development means different things to different people in different contexts, leading to 'strong' and 'weak' versions of sustainability. This article addresses the question of which meaning of sustainability is given by the Dutch drinking water sector and its main stakeholders. The 'weak', or human-oriented, school was found at three of the four water companies studied. This is understandable, because water companies have a human-oriented task: to provide the public with drinking water. The 'strong' version of sustainability was found within several governmental bodies. Their view of 'staying within the natural water system' was unacceptable for most other societal actors. A third form of sustainability was developed by the fourth drinking water company studied. It bridges the human and nature interests in a step by step dialogue. This way of looking at sustainable development may be an interesting perspective in which humans start seeing themselves as an integral part of nature again, instead of as being outside and above nature. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

Water Pricing in the Netherlands

In the Netherlands, about 75 % of monitored groundwater extractions are used for the production of tap water. Water extraction for tap water production is the main consumer. The tap water rate of the various drinking water companies largely depends on the share of groundwater used, which requires lower treatment costs than surface water. In 2014, the tap water rate varied between 1.11 and 2.21 euro/m3. There are various taxes in place on groundwater use, as well as on tap water use. Such taxes can aim to recover costs, trigger water-saving technologies, or reduce water demand for environmental purposes. In 1995, the national groundwater tax was implemented—a so-called “win–win, green” tax that aimed to reduce the income tax burden and to have an environmental impact in terms of reduced groundwater extraction. From 2012 onward, the Dutch government, however, revoked it, as it was fiscally inefficient and environmentally ineffective. It increased distortions by taxing only a narrow base and by interfering with groundwater management programs funded by an existing provincial groundwater fee. In 2014, the national tap water tax was increased. But given the fact that only 0.6 % of a household’s budget on average is dedicated to tap water, it is not likely that it will substantially reduce water demand. This increase in the tap water tax contradicts the low rate of the value-added tax (VAT) on tap water

Medicinal footprint of the population of the Rhine basin

The relation between pharmaceutical residues along the river Rhine and the demographic characteristics of the upstream population was studied. A sampling campaign was performed in which water samples from the Rhine were taken at 42 locations. Measurements were compared to a two parameter model with regional demographic data as main input. For 12 out of the 21 studied pharmaceuticals, a significant dominant demographic group could be identified. For 3 out of these 12 pharmaceuticals the male elderly were the most contributing demographic group. A Monte Carlo analysis showed a high level of significance for the results of this study (p < 0:01). By combining environmental water quality data and demographic data, better insight was gained in the interplay between humans and their environment, showing the medicinal footprint of the population of the Rhine basin.Water ManagementCivil Engineering and Geoscience