Water Management Issues of Mexico City
The United Nations defines the metropolis with over 10 million populations as mega cities . According to the latest study carried in 2007, nowadays more people live in cities than in the countryside resulting in a shift in balance. The issues of energy, water, transportation and health care are in the priority list of major challenges faced by mega cities. Densely packed areas releases large amounts of wastes results in air, water and soil pollution. Another unfocused point is the condition of the surrounding states or regions around the mega cities.
The current waste disposal management is concerned about driving the waste and garbage out of the cities and caring less about the nearby rural areas where the garbage is dumped. People in the rural areas are left them to themselves unless any strong protest comes from that region. The rural folk are becoming the real victims and scapegoats due the pollution caused by the producers living the cities. Mega cities are generally facing the problem of clean water scarcity and improper sanitation.
The water resource management systems are well managed and administered by popular administrators. But they are not meeting the required standards due to the loop holes which have been prevalent for many years. Such loopholes include illegal connections for about 30 to 35 percent, lack of proper roads and lanes making the supply complex, improper planning of buildings, etc. The short term approach for every problem will hinder the road map to the long term plan.
Major challenges faced are: • Lack of transparency and huge corruption in governance. • Rural-urban and rich-poor demarcation. • Short, medium and long term goal achievements. • Traditional and future-oriented approach. • Financial, institutional, political and managerial constrains. • Engineering-oriented, service-oriented, capital intensive and labor intensive management philosophy. • Water pricing related socio economic problems • Municipalities and river basin management issues .
