Lights and Shadows of Urban Water Demand Management: The Case of the Metropolitan Region of Barcelona

The economic, social, and environmental limits of supplying water to metropolitan areas through conventional means (reservoirs, water transfers, etc.) have resulted in growing consideration of demand management actions as well as in the use of non-conventional sources of supply. In terms of demand management, economic instruments (pricing and taxes), domestic water-saving technologies, and educational campaigns to encourage water saving during periods of drought have received special attention. While demand management policies have an effect on conserving water and therefore should be welcome, they present problems and uncertainties as well. Using the example of the metropolitan region of Barcelona, in this article I argue that water demand management policies may be insufficient for reaching their ultimate goal of controlled water consumption when confronted with structural changes in urban development such as the expansion of low-density growth, the multiplication of the number of households, or gains in income, all of which lead to a potentially greater demand for water. This calls for more integration of water policies with land use and urban development policies.     

JAPANESE REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT IN CANADIAN CITIES and REGIONS, 1985–1993

The location and type of Japanese property investments in Canada are examined as a case study of the increasing globalization of property markets and the remarkable rise of Japanese international investors in the late 1980s. Unpublished official statistics and company interviews indicate investment patterns had uneven implications for Canada's cities and regions. Even though Toronto is often seen as Canada's world city, Japanese investors as a whole overlooked the commercial potential of its property markets. The majority of their real estate investments took advantage of Japanese tourism growth in Pacific Canada and were associated with hotels and golf courses in Vancouver and its surrounding region. The author stresses the importance of Japanese perceptions, as well as local opportunities and constraints, in shaping the geography of Japanese real estate investment in Canada. L'emplacement et le type des investissements japonais au Canada sont examinés comme étude de cas sur la globalisation croissante des marchés de biens et la mon-tée remarquable des actionnaires internationaux japonais à la fin des années 80. Les statistiques officielles non-publiées montrent des implications inégales dans les villes et les régions du Canada. Bien que Toronto soit considéré souvent comme la ville mondiale du Canada, les actionnaires japonais dans ?ensemble ont négligé son potentiel commercial. La majorité des investissements sur les biens immobiliers ont pris avantage de la croissance du tourisme japonais au Canada Pacifique, et fut liee aux hotels et terrains de golf à Vancouver et dans les environs de la ville. ?auteur souligne ?importance des perceptions japonaises, aussi bien que les occasions et contraintes locales, en façonnant la géographie de leur investissement de biens au Canada. Mots-clés: investissement de biens au Canada; actionnaires japonais; investissements immobiliers     

Cost,price, and revenue differentials in electricity supply: Queensland and Australia

Queenslanders consume relatively less but pay more for electricity than most Australians, a penalty surprising in a State with the nation's largest sources of energy. An explanation lies in the industry's relative youth and dynamic performance, strong post-war capitalisation, inherent monopoly organisation and the issue of product differentiation expressed in peak/off-peak pricing. Such matters pose particular problems in the Queensland market which is numerically small and areally dispersed. Examination of production and distribution economics reveals that Queensland fuel is presently not cheap and that some of the penalty derives from the strong capitalisation which the system is undergoing. Further pressures lie in the lack of scale economies and in financial policies of supply authorities such as spatial price equalisation. Many factors bear on future prices and predictions are difficult. Nevertheless Queensland's energy advantages should ensure that unless major change transforms the economic environment the price of electricity relative to that in other States falls during the next two decades.