Water Conservation in Mexico
Water has been associated with life in the Mexican tradition. Its importance as a backbone of the community survival is evident in their culture, beliefs and actions towards water and its conservation. The valley of Mexico is a highly populated and a semi arid region. Desertification and drought are a common phenomenon in the locality. Due to the climatic conditions, droughts and lack of water are almost unavoidable. The conditions affect crop yields, cause deaths and erode the common culture of the residents in the region. They have to change their traditions and beliefs in order to survive the harsh conditions. Being a region with harsh climatic conditions, there are very few sources of clean water. Coupled with dense population, the need for water is dire in the region. The community has to ensure that clean and safe water is available for use by all members of the society. This makes water “a precious resource” and the most sought after commodity in the locality.
Scarcity of water affects the whole community in that it slows down the economic, social and environmental development of the Mexican valley. The effect of water scarcity shows a negative impact to women in the community. Being the ones who are culturally and socially responsible for fetching it and ensuring availability in households, water scarcity means a burden to them. Sanitation is also a major aspect affected by water scarcity. Unavailability of water lowers the hygienic standards of the residents while at the same time affecting the health status of the community members. Knowing the impact of lack of clean water in terms of health and economic hazards that it presents to the community, the federal government of Mexico has put in place policies and measures to supply water and promote water conservation activities by residents. The Federal government developed a policy to supply clean-piped clean drinking water through a central governing body (municipal council) to the residents. The success of the policy faces a challenge due to the effects of traditional cultural, social and political practices of the native Mexicans.
As a precious natural resource, the rural Mexican community use water for various purposes on their land. These uses aim at improving, furthering and maintaining the status of their religious, economic and social wellbeing of their community. Since the region is arid, the community uses water for irrigation in order to supply the communities’ need for food. Irrigation of large tracts and there it implies a pecking order among the residents to preserve the water sources to ensure a steady supply for food production. Water conservation measures ensure that the community averts drought effects and hunger due to food shortage. The municipal authorities have to ensure that natives adhere to water conservation policies put in place and that the policies succeed in providing safe and clean water for domestic use and drinking to the communities. They set up the measures, methods and techniques for harvesting, storing and conserving water. They have a responsibility of teaching such methods to the rural residents and ensure that the methods succeed in their purposes.
The Mexicans have their own rich traditional water conservation and management techniques in use overtime. These methods of water conservation date back to the original inhabitants, the Aztecs and the Mayas. Decisions regarding the practice and enhancement of water conservation measures has been through upholding of a set of unique cultural beliefs and practices among the residents of the Mexican valley. Despite the success of such measures, the acute rise in population and demand of water in the region requires diverse methods of water collection, conservation and supply to the community. It requires that the residents have to adapt and embrace new practices that will help them survive climatically. There is a conflict between their traditional water conservation techniques and policies set up by the municipal authorities. The residents face a dilemma of choosing between the new techniques or their techniques that have helped them survive.
Among the cultural values used in water management are the religious festivals. The religious festivals celebrations occur at different periods in time. By being able to determine the link between such periods and climatic conditions, the Mexicans are able to make informed decisions regarding water management. Celebrations that occur during rainy seasons prepare them to harvest rainwater for irrigation during such a period (Ellingwood, 2009). When celebrating during dry spells, they conserve the available water resources. The religious festivals teach and educate residents on water conservation practices in the community.
Traditional political organization was a cultural practice in use for water management decisions in the rural Mexican community. Community’s political structural organization is such that a group of families composed villages, which in turn are subject to leadership by appointed elders and heads with the man being the head of the family. The heads are responsible for making sure that equitable distribution of water in the community is fine. Currently the authority of water distribution is with the municipal authorities who just like traditional leaders; they have to ensure availability of water to households (Ellingwood, 2009). Families that do not get water voice their grievances to the authorities. Relinquishing water control responsibility to the municipal authorities is an ongoing conflict among the residents who do not believe that someone else will carry out the responsibility effectively.
Traditional social and cultural knowledge about the regional climate and condition is a value used by the rural Mexican residents in water conservation decisions. An example is the application of lunar and solar calendar developed by the Mayans. It guarantees maximum use of available water and steady supply of food in an otherwise dry area. Traditional knowledge on indicators of climatic changes is another example of cultural value used in conserving water. The knowledge on traditional weather indicators such as change in behavior patterns of animals, physiological changes in plants, position of stars in the sky and moon phases guides the community’s decisions on water conservation.
Traditional Mexican cultural practices and techniques are gradually disappearing due to changes in political, economic and social setting. The traditional structures and techniques that were in place have weakened with time. This is because of interaction between the indigenous values, techniques and methods with the external influences. Migration of the younger generation to urban regions in such for more space, clean water and good climates has generated a gap in the passing/teaching of the traditions. The older generation dies with the knowledge without transmitting it to the next generation. In addition, the traditional cultural practices have faded over time due to lack of a formal recording system to capture, preserve and distribute the knowledge. The only means of transmission is by word of mouth, which can highly distort the message with time.
In conclusion, there is a need to include the traditional water conservation techniques in the current policies to obtain a good measure of success. For example, the rich knowledge of the residents regarding the climatic conditions of the region, ecological patterns and crops will enable the policy makers develop suitable plans that incorporate accurate and relevant information to the residents. The residents will not find it difficult to follow familiar policies. There is need to incorporate the policies since they complement the modern methods.
References:
Ellingwood, K. (2009, Sep 7). Mexico Water Shortage becomes crisis amid drought. Los Angeles Time. Retrieved from http://articles.latimes.com/2009/sep/07/world/fg-mexico-drought7
Ennis-McMillan, M. C. (2006). A Precious Liquid. Belmont: Belmont, CA : Thomson Wadsworth, ©2006.
Ferraro, G. P., & Andreatta, S. (2010). Cultural anthropology : an applied perspective. Belmont: Belmont, CA : Wadsworth, ©2010.
ViVienne Bennett, S. D.-P. (2005). Opposing Currents: The Politics of Water and Gender in Latin America. Pittsburg: University of Pittsburg Press.
Wilken, G. (1976). Studies of resource management in traditional middle American farming systems. Colorado: Colorado University. Unpublished report.
