Impacts of water demand side policies on Mongolian residential users

The water industry in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, experiences water scarcity and managerial and economic problems due to global warming and financial crises. This paper explores several possible solutions by analysing householders' stated attitudes towards and stated (predicted) responses to different demand side policies. Using data from a survey of approximately 660 households (HHs) in Ulaanbaatar, this research is a seminal study of Mongolian residential water demand and is the first time the contingent behaviour method (CBM) has been employed to estimate price elasticity of water demand in this country. The CBM is particularly useful in data-poor environments, where one cannot use actual data to generate estimates. In this study, researchers use stated responses to a series of hypothetical changes in price to generate estimates of the price elasticity of demand for water of different types of HHs, including residents of formal apartments and those living in informal Ger areas, are characterized by a low level of public services, including water and sanitation services of the city. Householders' attitudes towards different price and non-price policies are also examined. The findings are of interest to those wishing to postpone water scarcity by better managing urban residential water demand – particularly in transit and developing economies