The Role of Water Policy in Mexico: Sustainability, Equity, and Economic Growth Considerations

Water resources management is one of Mexico’s most urgent environmental and resource problems, and one that imposes heavy costs on the economy. The country is slightly less than 2 million km2 in size and the population has quadrupled from 25 million in 1950 to over 106 million in June 2005. Population growth has occurred nationwide, but because of internal migration it has been greater in the semi-arid and arid north, northwest, and central regions, which are precisely the regions with greater economic activity and where water is scarce. The resulting increased demand for water, combined with more intensive use of water (stimulated in part by price distortions and relatively weak monitoring and enforcement arrangements), has led to insufficient water availability to support natural ecosystems, and seriously constrains growth in many areas.

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