Towards an assessment of the total economic value of Alsace's groundwater table

Abstract

The objective of this article was to raise the basis of the total value estimation for the Alsatian aquifer. This work is constructed around three principal points: (i) the use and non use values identification; (ii) an exhaustive quantifying of all the effective charges through a data base building; (iii) a parallel of the use and non use benefits with the monetary valuation methods. An exhaustive account of all the effective charges in the aquifer has established a charged volume between 624 et 717 millions of m3 per year. The second result is based on the industrial activity weight in the total charged volume of the aquifer (more than 70%). These results represent only the first step of a more ambitious work: the total value estimation for the aquifer, knowing that the choice of all the relevant monetary indicators have to discussed before.