Role of Sociodemographic Characteristics in Projections of Water Use

Abstract

The effects of demographic and other socioeconomic variables (other than total population size) on differentials in per capita residential water use have received insufficient attention in water resource planning and water‐use projection efforts. This analysis uses secondary and primary data from a study completed in Texas to examine the magnitude and nature of the effects of such factors on per capita residential water use, and to evaluate the effects of the inclusion of such variables on the accuracy of projections of water use. Using regression and standard projection‐simulation techniques, the results suggest that demographic and socioeconomic variables, such as the age of the householder, racial or ethical status, and household composition, markedly affect water use, and are often of relatively greater importance than economic, climatic, or other physical factors in explaining per capita water use. The analysis also suggests that the inclusion of these variables in water‐use projection models could substantially increase the accuracy of the materials in projecting aggregate levels of water use.