The Growing Clean Water Shortage in Mexico: Causes and Impacts

By Hadeer Omar Last updated May 6, 2025 130 0

Contents

1 Scope of the Crisis

2 Urban Issues

3 Environmental and Climatic Challenges

4 Infrastructure and Management Problems

5 Community and Environmental Initiatives

6 Socio-Economic Consequences

7 References:

Mexico is facing a serious water crisis, with a large segment of its population lacking access to clean and properly managed water. This problem arises from various factors, including inadequate infrastructure, environmental issues, and socio-economic inequalities.

Scope of the Crisis

Data from the World Health Organization and UNICEF reveals that about 57% of households in Mexico do not have access to a safely managed water supply, and 43% lack safe sanitation facilities. This widespread issue affects both urban and rural areas, with the most vulnerable communities suffering the most.

Urban Issues

In major cities like Mexico City, the situation is especially alarming. Researchers from the Autonomous University of Mexico (UAM) indicate that nearly 43% of the city’s residents do not have access to clean water. The crisis has worsened due to a 30% rise in consumption during the COVID-19 pandemic and a 40% loss of water from leaks in the distribution network, stemming from poor infrastructure maintenance. Years of underfunding have resulted in about 40% of all water pumped through the city’s system being lost to leaks, with the water simply being absorbed into the ground.

Environmental and Climatic Challenges

Environmental degradation and climate change have intensified water scarcity in Mexico. Deforestation in highland areas, loss of restoration zones, and urban expansion have disrupted natural water cycles. Over the past 60 years, these changes have significantly impacted Mexico’s climate and water resources, creating an ecological crisis due to insufficient attention to minimum water balances, largely driven by real estate development. Additionally, extreme droughts have affected nearly two-thirds of municipalities, leading to serious challenges such as sanitation problems, environmental degradation, and repercussions for large businesses.

Infrastructure and Management Problems

Inefficiencies in water management, including high leak rates and unaccounted-for water, overexploited sources, and potentially outdated infrastructure, complicate efforts to resolve this crisis. The lack of consistent investment has hindered progress in providing safe water access to low-income communities.

Community and Environmental Initiatives

Despite these obstacles, initiatives are underway to tackle the water crisis. In the arid region south of Mexicali, the Las Arenitas artificial wetland has become an environmental success, transforming wastewater into a crucial ecological resource. Established in 2007 to combat severe pollution in the New River, the Las Arenitas treatment facility processes a significant portion of Mexicali’s annual sewage. The plant utilizes surface-aerated and facultative lagoons for water treatment, later enhanced by a constructed wetland introduced in 2009. This 99-hectare wetland employs phytoremediation, where plants and microorganisms naturally purify water, significantly improving its quality before it flows into the Hardy River. This initiative has promoted biodiversity, with bird species increasing from 8 to 160 and populations reaching 18,000. The wetlands also contribute to environmental education and aquifer replenishment, addressing the region’s unsustainable water practices, where aquifer extraction surpasses annual replenishment.

Additionally, women across Mexico are spearheading impactful environmental conservation efforts, often rooted in deep ancestral connections to the land. In Sinaloa, women from the Yoreme-Mayo communities have united under the collective Aquí No to resist a decade-long threat from a petrochemical ammonia plant harming Ohuira Bay’s delicate ecosystem and sacred mangroves. In Xochimilco, near Mexico City, biologist Gabriela Morales Valdelamar has revived her family’s chinampa farming heritage to restore pre-Hispanic agricultural methods and educate future generations. In Michoacán, María Teresa Bravo Perucho, the first female leader of her Purépecha community, is mobilizing people against deforestation linked to the avocado industry, which threatens both water sources and community autonomy. Meanwhile, in Oaxaca’s Chacahua Lagoon, Afro-Mexican fisherwoman Cirila Martinez and the Mujeres del Manglar collective are working to restore mangroves devastated by government projects that disrupted the lagoon’s delicate saltwater balance.

Socio-Economic Consequences

The absence of clean water has profound socio-economic effects. In Mexico City, the crisis has sparked increasing anger and violence over water access. Wealthier residents maintain reliable water supplies, while poorer communities depend on water trucks and rainwater harvesting. Furthermore, Mexico’s limited water resources could have far-reaching economic repercussions, jeopardizing billions of dollars in investments and thousands of jobs anticipated from the nearshoring trend. Executives from major national energy and infrastructure firms report that international companies considering relocating operations to Mexico have two main concerns: access to reliable, clean energy and water availability.

The water crisis in Mexico is a complex issue that demands comprehensive solutions, including infrastructure upgrades, sustainable water management strategies, and community involvement. Addressing these challenges is vital for ensuring fair access to clean water and protecting the country’s environmental and economic future.

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