Next Mexican govt must work on comprehensive water law – AMLO

The next Mexican administration will have to work on a comprehensive bill related to water use, said President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO, in photo). 

During his morning press conference on Friday, AMLO said such a bill is one of three tools the government could use to protect water resources, the others being mapping of underground and superficial water availability by water authority Conagua and a reform to impose new restrictions on awarding water concessions, which is being discussed by lawmakers.

“The new law may be a subject for the next government, but we must update the numbers related to water availability in the country to limit the concessions or rights, so they’re not handed out indiscriminately,” he said.

The press coordinator for the presidency, Jesús Ramírez, said the Conagua document is ready and will soon be published in the official gazette. 

López Obrador added modernization of water infrastructure is needed to avoid leaks in the distribution network. 

“Something that is basic to repair is the pipelines and water distribution network because 30-40% of water is lost due to the bad state of the pipes. It’s not about having new water sources but about sensibly using those we already have,” he said.

AMLO leaves office at the end of September next year.