Economic Analysis of Water Resources Management and the Environmental Impacts of Hydraulic Infrastructure
A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Water Resources Management, Policy and Governance".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 January 2026 | Viewed by 1287
Special Issue Editors
Interests: virtual water trade; environmental benefits assessment; water management; machine learning; scenario simulation; low-carbon economics
Interests: water rights; water resources management; water-use efficiency
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Effective water resources management is essential not only for ensuring equitable access and efficient allocation but also for maintaining environmental stability and supporting long-term economic development. However, many regions across the globe are facing acute water-related challenges, including resource scarcity, pollution, uneven distribution, and weak governance mechanisms. These challenges are exacerbated by climate change, population growth, and rapid industrialization, placing unprecedented stress on both natural water systems and built infrastructure.
Water resources management and hydraulic infrastructure are deeply intertwined components of regional development. As key instruments of water regulation and allocation, hydraulic projects—such as dams, reservoirs, and irrigation systems—not only support industrial growth and urbanization but also reshape hydrological processes and ecological patterns. In many regions, unsustainable water use and infrastructure expansion have exceeded environmental carrying capacities, leading to pollution, ecosystem degradation, and intensified water-related risks.
This Special Issue focuses on the economic analysis of water resources management in conjunction with the environmental impacts of hydraulic infrastructure. We aim to explore how economic tools—such as cost–benefit analysis, environmental valuation, and virtual water accounting—can be used to assess and guide infrastructure development, ecological protection, and sustainable water governance in diverse socio-economic contexts.
Dr. Changfeng Shi
Dr. Lina Zhang
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- water resources management
- hydraulic infrastructure
- environmental benefit assessment
- sustainable water governance
- virtual water and ecosystem impacts
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