10311. Challenges and Realities of Water Management of Megacities: The Case of Mexico City Metropolitan Area
- Author:
- Cecilia Tortajada
- Publication Date:
- 10-2008
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Journal of International Affairs
- Institution:
- School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
- Abstract:
- Megacities—characterized as metropolitan areas of 10 million or more inhabitants—have become an important focus in terms of water provisions, sanitation services and the related impact of urban development on natural resources. While basic needs of residents of smaller cities are very similar, the emphasis placed on mega cities lies in the fact that these massive urban conglomerates have grown to almost unmanageable dimensions. This, in turn, has made water provision and sanitation services to the entire population a bleak, if not unachievable, task. In most megacities of the developing world, clean water is both scarce and expensive to produce. Large sectors of the population in such densely populated urban areas do not have access to potable water, and even larger sectors of the population do not have access to sanitation. Non-revenue water—water that is produced and enters the distribution system but that is never billed to consumers because it is lost due to leakages or illegal connections—is up to 30 to 40 percent. Infrastructure is either scarce, becoming complex or deteriorating. In addition, water supplies are largely underpriced and necessary investments are estimated to reach billions of dollars. However, as complex as these matters are, the real challenges in terms of water provision point in another direction. The main problem in urban concentrations, which is further heightened in megacities, is the lack of appropriate management, adequate institutions and sustainable planning to address these challenges beyond short-term approaches.
- Topic:
- Water
- Political Geography:
- Mexico