(RepublicanDaily.org) – Mexico City, one of the world’s densest cities with a population of more than 22.5 million people, is close to running out of water.
The country has been experiencing a severe drought and unusually hotter temperatures, which experts have attributed to climate change. Scientists are also skeptical that the rainy season, which is scheduled to come in a few months, will help replenish the water supply to sufficiently provide enough for Mexico City’s population.
Many residents, such as Alejandro Gomez, have been subsisting on water they can purchase, as well as the trickle of rationed water that comes out of his tap every day. He, along with many others, use the run-off waste water to flush their toilets. Speaking to CNN, Gomez says that water shortages are not an uncommon occurrence for him or his family, but the situation has become worse in recent years.
Local politicians, while attempting damage control by downplaying the shortage, still acknowledge that there is a problem, hence the rationing of water. Officials are also asking residents to limit water use to daily essentials, putting off washing their cars or cleaning streets and sidewalks with it. Experts say that if the situation does not improve, the city is barreling towards a “day zero” event – where the city’s taps run completely dry – something that can happen in a matter of a few months.
Mexico City’s water shortage problems are further complicated not only by the sheer size of its population, but also its location – the city sits at 7,300 feet above sea level, and on relatively softer clay soil, into which the city is slowly, but surely sinking into year after year. The city is also plagued by its chaotic urban development and planning, which has been haphazardly been added on to year after year, resulting in poorer infrastructure and lack of planning for the future resources that will be needed by the city’s populace.
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