Cost-effective water quality improvement in linked terrestrial and marine ecosystems: a spatial environmental–economic modelling approach

P. C. Roebeling; M. E. van Grieken; A. J. Webster; J. Biggs; P. Thorburn

doi:10.1071/MF08346

RESEARCH ARTICLE

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Cost-effective water quality improvement in linked terrestrial and marine ecosystems: a spatial environmental–economic modelling approach

P. C. Roebeling ^A ^E , M. E. van Grieken ^B , A. J. Webster ^C , J. Biggs ^D and P. Thorburn ^D

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A CESAM – University of Aveiro, Department of Environment, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.

^B CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems, Davies Laboratory, PMB PO, Aitkenvale, Qld 4814, Australia.

^C CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems, ATFI, PO Box 12139, Cairns, Qld 4870, Australia.

^D CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems, 306 Carmody Road, St Lucia, Qld 4067, Australia.

^E Corresponding author. Email: peter.roebeling@ua.pt

Marine and Freshwater Research 60(11) 1150-1158 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF08346
Submitted: 16 December 2008 Accepted: 7 August 2009 Published: 17 November 2009

Abstract

Worldwide, coastal and marine ecosystems are affected by water pollution originating from coastal river catchments, even though ecosystems such as the Great Barrier Reef are vital from an environmental as well as an economic perspective. Improved management of coastal catchment resources is needed to remediate this serious and growing problem through, e.g. agricultural land use and management practice change. This may, however, be very costly and, consequently, there is a need to explore how water quality improvement can be achieved at least cost. In the present paper, we develop an environmental–economic modelling approach that integrates an agricultural production system simulation model and a catchment water quality model into a spatial environmental–economic land-use model to explore patterns of land use and management practice that most cost-effectively achieve specified water quality targets and, in turn, estimate corresponding water pollution abatement cost functions. In a case study of sediment and nutrient water pollution by the sugarcane and grazing industries in the Tully–Murray catchment (Queensland, Australia), it is shown that considerable improvements in water quality can be obtained at no additional cost, or even benefit, to the agricultural industry, whereas larger water quality improvements come at a significant cost to the agricultural industry.

Additional keywords: cost-effectiveness, diffuse source pollution.

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the CSIRO Water for a Healthy Country Flagship, the Marine and Tropical Sciences Research Facility and the Terrain-NRM for facilitating this research. The authors thank Anne Henderson and Michael Hartcher (CSIRO) as well as John Armour and Louise Hateley (DNR&M) for their input and help in using SedNet/ANNEX. The authors also thank the anonymous referees for their helpful comments on earlier versions of this paper.

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