From: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu (Rich Winkel)
Subject: Mexico: Severe water shortage and pollution
Followup-To: alt.activism.d
Originator: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
Organization: PACH
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 1992 22:16:48 GMT

/** carnet.mexnews: 68.5 **/
** Written  3:38 pm  Apr 15, 1992 by sipro in cdp:carnet.mexnews **
WATER, A STORY OF BASIC NEEDS, SEVERE SUPPLY AND SEWAGE SHORTAGES,
AND POLLUTION.
 
Figures of the most recent XI General Census for Housing and
Population, published on April 13, indicate huge problems in
regards the country's water supply, management, infrastructure and
sewage. In fact, problems that though expressed in official figures
appear too big for Salinas' other Mexico, supposedly at the verge
of entering that other, the first, world.
 
The Census reveals that from the approximately 81 million Mexicans,
16,7 million lack fresh water, 21,7 million have access to it only
outside their houses, and 2,4 million use public taps. In other
words, 47% of the population has access to fresh water at home and
20% has no access to any service whatsoever (which means, they get
their watersupply directly from rivers etc.). 
 
Over one-third of the population (29,5 million) has no sewage. From
those who do have this basic need, 6,9 million people's sewage is
connected to septic puts, and 2,3 million see their sewage end in
rivers, lakes or just in the land. Needless to point to the health
problems this deficient infrastructure causes.
 
Worst off are those who lack both fresh water and sewage: still
some 14,4 million. Additionally, 10,4 million have no electricity
(appr. 12% of 1990's total population). In comparison to 1980, some
progress has been made, when 30% had no access to fresh water and
51% had no sewage.
 
Despite substantial investment-increases over the last years, the
progress has been slow. Besides, problems are not solved by
widening access to the vital liquid only, but also require
substantial improvement in terms of availability and continuous
maintenance of the infrastructure.
 
The National Water Commision recognizes that the general situation
of the services is characterized by arrears in and deterioration
of the existing infrasructure, by limited autonomy and technical
capacity to manage administration and operation adequately, as well
as by the dispersed institutional support.
 
Official documents mention that water supply is often intermittent,
needs major quality improvement and that the problem is most acute
in the countryside, where access, and quality reach their lowest
levels. Conclusion of the National Water Commission: the
infrastructure of fresh water supply, distribution and drainage and
treatment of residual waters urgently need investment for its
rehabilitation.
 
The water problem lies not only in the lack of service, but also
in the financing and quality of the system. Nation-wide, some
170,000 cubic meters of fresh water are supplied per second. The
capital's metropolitan zone consumes 63,000, Guadalajara 11,000 and
Monterrey 9,500 cubic meters (the 3 biggest cities, whwre all
together live approximately 28 million people). 
 
Nationally, 115,000 cubic meters of residual water is generated per
second, but only 15% receives any (not necessarily the adequate)
treatment. From the 256 municipal water-treatment installations,
only 35% functions. Throughout the country, industry counts with
the negligeable number of 150 treatment installations. Low tariffs
and rights reduce the interest to use recycled water to practically
nil.
 
The efficiency of the system, measured by water supplied and water
charged, has a national average of 40 to 50%. Losses are said to
be due to leaks in the tubes, illegal water consumption and
deficiencies in the measuring, billing and charging system. 
 
In the Federal District, according to the Census, 96% of its
inhabitants have access to tubed water, and 93% have drainage. This
figure is probably somewhat flattered, since the majority of the
capital's slums do belong to Mexico City's urban zone, but are
institutionally located in the border state of Mexico. There, the 
endless slums have definitely no drainage, access to fresh water
etc. For that reason it would be more significant to see the
figures of the state of Mexico to get a rough idea of the size of
Mexico City's water problem, but those are not provided (at least
not in the summary in La Jornada of Apr. 13).
 
The center of the capital has sunk some 9 meters since the
beginning of this century, due to water extraction from aquiferous
cloaks.
 
Water is not only problematic in terms of supply and services, but
its pollution is causing ecological (and therefore, health,
agricultural, biological, etc.) problems nationwide as ecologist
Ivan Restrepo points out in La Jornada on April 13.
 
* State of Tlaxcala (central Mexico): the water of the river
Zahuapan cannot be used for agricultural purposes, which forces
numerous campesinos not to cultivate silanthrum, onions, lettuce,
tomatoes, flowercabbage etc. on 1000 hectares of arable land. Only
solution would be an end to pollution by the industrial plants
located in the north and center of Tlaxcala. On the short term,
stopping cultivation is the only way to prevent (or contain)
gastrointestinal illnesses among the local population.
 
* State of Puebla (central Mexico): agrarian leaders of the state
have announced, that the local campesinos will water their crops
with the avialable water, `polluted or not', since they sustain not
to be responsable for the rivers' Atoyac and Nexapa contaimination.
They assign these rivers' miserable condition to industrial water
discharges, whose responsables are very well aware of the damage
they cause to agriculture.
 
* State of Tamaulipas (eastern coast, US-border): Despite several
previous denouncements to the Ministry of Urban Development and
Ecology - SEDUE, only days ago changed into Ministry of Social
Development), the authorities of the town of Panuco denounced again
the death of hundreds of fish of different species in the inlet of
Topila. Cause of the fish mortality is the pollution generated by
the Sugar Foment sugar processing plant. Not only fish species are
endangered, but also extinguishong animals such as otters and
lizards.
 
* State of Guanajuato (central Mexico): In 1991, 28 companies were
closed down for polluting the environment with their residual
waters. Moreover, 300 puts are being desinfected, used for human
water consumption.
 
* State of Nuevo Leon (border state US): Multimillion investments
via the `Monterrey Cuatro' program, are supposed to safeguard the
state for an ecological crisis by constructing water recycling
installations.
 
* State of Guerrero (Pacific coast): According to Acapulco's Water
Commission, `only' 100,000 people from the total of 1,5 million
inhabitants of the beach resort, lack fresh water. Experts,
however, assert that the figure is much higher and also that the
quality of the drinking water provided to houses, hotels and
restaurants is questionable.
 
* State of Veracruz (Gulf coast): If the official promises are to
be believed, the Tamiahua lagoon will be ecologically saved. The
Tamiahua is Mexico's largest oisters breedingplace, but also the
most polluted. Some 1 million dollars will be spent to clean the
Tamiahua.
 
The quality of Mexico's water has deteriorated sensibly over the
last few years due to mismanagement of residual waters. Main
producers of ecologically harmful residual waters are industry,
human settlements, cattle-ranging and agriculture, discharging
water containing chemical material, faeces, organic garbage and
salts in rivers and aquiferous cloaks.
 
Since recently, rumours circulate about the wonderwaters of El
Tlacote in Queretaro state, presumably possessing healing powers.
Innumerable pilgrims ranging from campesinos, politicians and
foreign vips have already tried their luck or given their faith to
El Tlacote's miracle. Reliable studies have shown that this water
is ordinary H2O with a PH degree close to neutrality, with the same
composition of salts and coaldioxide as clean riverwater.....
** End of text from cdp:carnet.mexnews **

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