Sustainable Wastewater Management to Reduce Freshwater Contamination and Water Depletion in Mexico

José De Anda,Harvey Shear

doi:10.3390/w13162307

Abstract

At present, most rivers, lakes, and reservoirs in Mexico have significant anthropogenic contamination. The lack of sanitation infrastructure, the increase in the number of nonoperational or abandoned sanitation facilities, limited enforcement of environmental regulations, and limited public policies for the reuse of treated wastewater all contribute to the contamination and water availability problem. The reasons for this are identified as (1) the high maintenance and operational costs in sanitation facilities (including electricity consumption); (2) poor planning and practices of wastewater management and reuse by municipalities; (3) national policies that do not favor the reuse of treated wastewater for agriculture, industry, and municipal services instead of using groundwater as at present; (4) failure to adopt a governance model at the three levels of government; and (5) transparency in the management of financial resources. Some measures to improve this situation include (a) transparent decision-making; (b) participation and accountability in budgeting and planning at the national, state, and municipal levels; and (c) planning for the reuse of treated wastewater to reduce groundwater extractions and to reduce discharges to surface waters from the beginning of every WWTP project.

Highlights

The official data indicate that the country experienced a gradual decrease in the population growth rate from 2.7% in 1960 to 2.0% in 2010 [12]
According to the official population projections, it is estimated that the population growth will decrease by 2050 until it reaches 0.23%, and the total population will be around 150 million people
The equation used to estimate the average annual growth rate (GR) for every ten-year period (n), where Pn and Pn−1 are the populations at the start and end of each decade, respectively, was: 1 Pn − Pn−1

Summary

Introduction

Apart from their value as water sources for water supply for urban areas and food production, freshwater lakes have always been important to human life, because they serve as a freshwater fishery, recreation sites, and avenues of transport. They provide other benefits, such as wildlife preservation, the replenishment of groundwater, flood regulation, regulation of the local climate, and enhancement of the beauty of local landscapes [1]. An efficient sanitation of wastewaters is becoming an issue that must be considered, in developing countries where there is a major lag in providing this strategic service for the population

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Discussion

Conclusion