Mexico City Has Long Thirsted for Water. The Crisis Is Worsening.

[240B]

DNYUZ
18 May 2024

A collision of climate change, urban sprawl and poor infrastructure has pushed Mexico City to the brink of a profound water crisis.

The groundwater is quickly vanishing. A key reservoir got so low that it is no longer used to supply water. Last year was Mexico’s hottest and driest in at least 70 years. And one of the city’s main water systems faces a potential “Day Zero” this summer when levels dip so much that it, too, will no longer provide water.

“We’re suffering because the city is growing immeasurably and it cannot be stopped,” said Gabriel Martínez, 64, who lives in an apartment complex that struggles to get enough water for its roughly 600 residents. “There aren’t enough resources.”

Mexico City, once a water-rich valley that was drained to make way for a vast city, has a metropolitan population of 23 million, among the top 10 largest in the world and up from 15 million in 1990. It is one of several major cities facing severe water shortages, including Cape Town; São Paulo, Brazil; and Chennai, India. Many are the consequence of years of poor water management compounded by scarce rains.

And while Mexico City’s problems are worsening, they are not new. Some neighborhoods have lacked adequate piped water for years, but today, communities that have never had shortages are suddenly facing them.

(more)
https://dnyuz.com/2024/05/18/mexico-city-has-long-thirsted-for-water-the-crisis-is-worsening/

[Fishrrman]

This is going to be happening in the American Southwest and California before too many more years.

Just too many people
and...
Not enough resources to support them.

[240B]

What is never mentioned is Avocado farming. Avocados need an unbelievable amount of water.
An Avocado farm can easily drain an underground reservoir in a couple of years.

[libertybele]

What is never mentioned is Avocado farming. Avocados need an unbelievable amount of water.
An Avocado farm can easily drain an underground reservoir in a couple of years.

Interesting factoid; I didn't realize that.  FL avocados just aren't as tasty as Haas.

[PeteS in CA]

Gee, maybe Mexico should have encouraged industrial growth outside of the D.F. ... you know, spread the opportunities and population around.

One of the ancient symbols of Mexico was an eagle with a snake in its beak. It's from the story of how the Aztecs chose the site of Tenochtitlan, the site of modern Mexico City. The eagle is pictures perched on a cactus. The site of Tenochtitlan was on a lake, but the ancient city's population was far less and the D.F. apparently is an arid area.

I know there are California bashers who want to believe otherwise, but California has numerous reservoirs on rivers and creeks, and also uses aquifers for underground storage. Just the water district in which I live - part of Santa Clara County - has over a dozen reservoirs, and the aquifer over which I live is so full that water seeps through a low-lying section of the I-880 freeway. As a whole the state's reservoirs are at 80%-100% capacity, with more snow melt to come.

[libertybele]

No worries.  The U.S. will solve their problem.