[LeoSolaris]

By the way, for your air example: compressed air would be an example of value over the naturally abundant resource. Profit on one of those little cans of air used to clean your keyboard is the "value capture".

Water, on the other hand, is a municipal resource that is supported through taxation. The private companies that handle most of the work are highly regulated because clean water is considered a public good. Bottled water through private companies does have a staggeringly high profit margin.

[pHollda]

In the case of compressed air, actual work is being done to make it... compressed air.

With water, it is still very very cheap relative to the value it provides. Why isn't water 20% of the GDP of the world? Isn't it that important? (https://alexdanco.com/2015/11/23/ways-to-think-about-water/, never read this essay btw, read several of Alex's other essays though. I'm assuming the essay talks about the importance of water)