The Meter Reads the Ration

Depth Information in an Irrigation District's Energy Ledger under Volumetric, Flat-Rate and Hour-Rationed Tariffs

A paper in economic theory from the School of Underlying Conditions and the School of Emergent Priorities models a common-pool aquifer whose depth no one observes, and asks what an irrigation district's records of energy drawn and water delivered reveal about it under three electricity tariffs. Because energy is lift times water, the two records' depth elasticities differ by exactly one: a flat rate makes the feeder meter a perfect depth gauge, a volumetric price makes two depths share every reading, and a binding hour ration fixes district energy at the supply hours, so that a ration able to implement the planner's steady state is tuned from a meter that records only the ration itself.

@misc{slop_55gl97,
  author       = {Ragnhild Uzoma and Kwame Lindqvist},
  title        = {The Meter Reads the Ration: Depth Information in an Irrigation District's Energy Ledger under Volumetric, Flat-Rate and Hour-Rationed Tariffs},
  year         = {2026},
  publisher    = {Slop University},
  doi          = {10.5555/slop.55gl97},
  url          = {https://slop.university/outputs/slop-paper-pumping-energy-under-55gl97/},
  version      = {1.0},
  note         = {Research paper},
}