The Ground Water Banking Project will look at two broad classes of environmental questions:

Status Quo questions:

• Are any environmental water needs currently unmet?
• Does the current system facilitate moving water to environmental uses?
• Do current efforts to meet environmental needs impose undue burdens on particular segments of society?
• What are current barriers to moving water to environmental uses?
• Do conflict levels suggest that current mechanisms fail to meet society's desire to allocate water to environmental uses?

Questions for Proposed Banking Systems:

• Does the accounting system address current obstacles or barriers?
• Does it impose burdens on particular segments of society?
• What additional environmental concerns does the proposed accounting system raise?
• What are the environmental implications of various pricing mechanisms?
• What are the environmental implications of managed recharge, instream flows, and other activities that an accounting system might facilitate?