An article by Professor Janice Beecher of the Michigan State University's Institute of Public Utilities recently caught our eye. In this article, Professor Beecher compiled data available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics about the costs over time associated with utilities, like electricity, natural gas, and water/sewage services. This is publicly available data, which by itself is fascinating to review, but it is particularly relevant for those interested in the price of water.
The graph says it all.
As you can see from the image below, water & sewer costs are projected to rise significantly over the next five years. Since 1983, average water & sewer costs have risen 4.5x, and are projected to be 6.4x by 2020. Furthermore, this is far, far greater than the expected increase in other utilities, or general inflation itself. The 10 year average (2004-2014) of annual change in CPI for water & sewer is roughly the same as college tuition, and we all know how fast college tuition is rising.
Water as a natural resource is something we all know is very valuable. However, water has generally been priced very low. According to this data, that is changing rapidly.
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