More efficient water pricing may avert a water crisis

One way of protecting watersheds from further degradation is to impose a more efficient pricing policy for waterâ one that does not only cover the direct cost of water distribution but also the cost of watershed as the provider of water. Ms. Dulce Elazegui of the Institute of Strategic Planning and Policy Studies of the University of the Philippines-Los Baños recommends the allocation of government revenues from these additional charges to management-related activities aimed at conserving watersheds. A certain amount of these additional revenues should be earmarked for the implementation of a watershed management plan.