Geography of Mexico
Mexico, a North American state, is surrounded by large water bodies, including the Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean Sea. When the geography of Mexico is considered, it can be discerned that the state has it all, from high mountains in central Mexico to rain forests in the south and deserts in the north. Attributing to its geography, the climatic conditions are wide-ranging. They have climatic conditions of dry lands, hot lands, cold lands, and tropical rain forests depending on which part of Mexico is being studied. The areas near water bodies receive adequate precipitation, tropical hurricanes, and cyclones.
Analyzing the History and Geography of Mexico City
The state capital of Mexico is “Mexico City.” The metropolis includes the areas on the north, east, and west sides of the federal district. If the history of Mexico City is looked into, it wasn’t founded until 1521. Before that, the place where Mexico City stands today was the central hub of the Aztec Empire. These Aztec people settled at the lakeside of Lake Texcoco and then permanently settled themselves on the island that was on the west of the lake. The land was given the name of “Tenochtitlan.” As the population grew and the island expanded, the Aztecs made canals to ensure the fresh water supply from the lake to all the neighborhoods.
When Spaniards discovered Mexico in 1521, they were surprised by how well the islands were maintained but they chose to destroy everything in the battles to conquer Mexico. Not only that but it is also accounted that they ended up killing almost all of the indigenous population. On the remains of Tenochtitlan, the colonizers built Mexico City. Since the previous water system was destroyed, the Spaniards made a new one to avert flooding. They drained the basins and filled the preexisting canals to expand the land.
They built more canals to drain the water from lakes into the river basin. The drainage increased and so did the decimation of flora and fauna. This loss led to more destructive floods later. The city was modernized after its independence from the colonizers. Many multinational companies established their production units in Mexico due to cheap labor. The population of the city, and the whole country in general, has been increasing exponentially, which is also putting the country’s resources under stress.
The Current Water Crisis in Mexico
According to a report, almost 52 percent of Mexicans have no access to safe water and out of 653 aquifers, 105 are being over-extracted. The northern part of the country is facing drought-like conditions, whereas southern and central Mexico are facing destructive and recurrent floods. Much of Mexico’s current crisis can be blamed on the colonizers who drained out the water to build cities, which now flood during the rainy season and are hyper-arid during the dry season. The water system is antiquated, due to which much water is lost because of leakage of pipes.
According to a report, the loss of water due to leakage is somewhat around 1000 liters (about 264.17 gal) per second. The water harvesting system is also poor and not in place. The water administration and management are deficiently regulated by the authorities, which has added more strain to the preexisting crisis. In addition to all the above reasons, the drastic impact of climate change cannot be neglected.
Even though northern Mexico has better water-related infrastructure, it does not receive enough precipitation due to climate change, which has endorsed drought-like phases. Southern Mexico not only lacks the infrastructure to properly harvest and store rainwater but also the regular cutting of trees from the tropical rainforest, which results in regular and severe floods. With an increase in the population, there is an increase in demand and usage of water which is an additional factor leading to water scarcity.
Additionally, Mexico is home to many MNC factories due to the availability of resources and labor at cut rates. These companies, which include big names like Coca-Cola, not only exploit the people of Mexico but also are the reason behind the country’s depleting water resources. An article published in 2018 revealed that the company extracts 300,000 gallons (about half the volume of an Olympic-size swimming pool) of water per day.
The Sinking of Mexico City
The irony of Mexico City is that it was built on a lake, in which it is now sinking. The same lake that once gave water to all the neighborhoods was unable to provide water to just a single city. The structures in the city are leaning and becoming sloppy; there are visible cracks in the buildings and pavements; the monuments are vanishing into the ground. The city is sinking 15 inches per year into the earth. The current water crisis in Mexico City is the reason. Some historical and current reasons can be attributed to the worsening conditions of the city.
When the lakes were drained by making canals in hopes of preventing flooding, that was the first mistake that produced the ripple effect that is being seen today. The whole modern-day Mexico City is built on the lakebed, due to which the water was pumped from below the ground. It diminished the availability of water, plunging Mexico City into a water crisis. Currently, the underground aquifer of Mexico City provides 60 percent of water to the city. Its over-extraction is also the factor behind the sinking of the city.
The water crisis in Mexico City is greatly attributed to its sinking but there are many other factors, and they are correlated. The population growth in the city has led to over-extraction from the aquifer and has accelerated the city’s descent into the earth. The city is inhabited by 21 million people and their water demand is 173 percent of the available water. The average water usage in the city is triple the UN recommendation i.e. 50-100 liters per person a day. Whereas in Mexico City, almost 320 liters of water is used per person in a single day.
The population growth in the city has led to over-extraction from the aquifer and has accelerated the city’s descent into the earth. As more and more water is being extracted, the water resource is depleting leading to less water available to the masses. There is also a disparity among the water access. The MNCs and the rich people of the city have access to more water whereas the rest of the city must buy the water.
The sinking has caused damage to the city’s already outdated water infrastructure and hence almost 40 percent of water leaks from the pipes before reaching the taps. Climate change and global warming have also led to the exacerbation of the turmoil. In the dry season, the city receives much less rainfall compared to what it received some decades ago. The rainfall it does get is not enough to fill up the reservoirs leading to parched and arid conditions sinking the city further.
If the government of Mexico does not take the crisis seriously, Mexico City along with the rest of the country will soon be facing “Day Zero,” when the water supply will be turned off and the water will be distributed manually.
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Hareem Amna graduated with a degree in applied psychology from GCUF and a post-graduation certification in clinical psychology from Kinnaird College. She is an aspiring writer focused on writing about current issues.