Mexico City

Environment

Mexico City's air pollution sent more than one million people to hospitals in 1999. Despite planting ten million trees, forcing gasoline stations to sell unleaded fuel and install vapor capture systems, and introducing alternative fuels for government vehicles, air pollution remains one of the most daunting environmental issues facing Mexico City. More than three million vehicles on the road each day are mostly to blame, but so are industries and small factories, deforestation, and fires.

Over the years, the city has tried or considered drastic measures to clear the air. Among the wildest ideas that have been proposed include blowing up surrounding hills to increase air circulation and installing large fans to blow smog out of the valley. Most recently, some have proposed creating thousands of rooftop gardens throughout the city.

The city also has tried some traditional approaches. To curtail smog, it prohibited driving on certain days, keeping vehicles off the road depending on the last number of their license plates. But the wealthier circumvented the law by buying a second, sometimes even a third car with a different license plate number.

Garbage and water also remain critical problems. The city's 17,000 sanitation workers and a fleet of more than 2,000 trucks collect 11,850 tons of trash per day. Mexico City, which has some of the world's highest rates of water consumption in the world, suffers chronic water shortages. Each day, it needs 35,000 liters (9,259 gallons) of water per second for its inhabitants. About 30 percent of the city's drinking water is brought from a location 127 kilometers (79 miles) away and then pumped 1,000 meters (0.62 miles) uphill. About 67 percent of the city's water comes from underground sources, with about 588 wells in operation.