On Formation, Defect and Innovation of the Existing Water Right Institution of the Yellow River

摘要

According to the theories of property right economics and institutional economies, this paper presents 3- stage water institutional evolutions of Yellow River from informal constraint to formal constraint and the formation of tradable water right institution. It discusses the defects of the existing water right institutional arrangements such as incomplete definition of water rights, low water prices, difficult adjustment of water shortage and surplus. It also provides ideas and suggestions for the existing water rights institution innovations, for example, to construct controllable water resources projects, to raise water prices step by step, to improve relative laws for water affairs.