Dividing the cost burden of environmental services: the Israeli-Palestinian wastewater regime

Effective cooperation over wastewater control requires that wastewater treatment costs be allocated equitably to the parties involved. The Polluter Pays Principle (PPP) remains the dominant cost-sharing principle although there is considerable criticism surrounding it. This study tries to identify the appealing characteristics of the PPP even when it seems highly inappropriate, such as in instances of drastic asymmetry and political conflict. Exploring the case of Palestinian transboundary wastewater from the West Bank flowing towards Israel, it shows that under asymmetrical conditions accompanied by political turmoil the PPP is adopted due to a political lack of choice rather than efficiency, effectiveness and equity considerations, as is often presented in the environmental literature. The result is that adopting the PPP leads to environmentally inferior solutions in the form of non-comprehensive and end-of-pipe solutions.