Does Residential Water Use Depend on Water Quality? Some Answers from a French Case Study.

Summary We examine the possible link between residential water consumption and quality of the water, both raw water and tap water. We first survey the existing literature on residential water use and its relation to water quality. An empirical analysis using French data is then provided. Our findings suggest that the quality of water at the tap, in particular its bacteriological quality, is a strong predictor of residential water consumption.