A year after severe drought and lack of rainfall took the Mexico City metropolitan area to the brink of a water crisis, conditions appear much improved in 2025.
The National Water Commission (Conagua) reported that as of April 1, the Cutzamala reservoir system — which provides almost a third of the capital’s water and supplies several suburban areas within neighboring México state — was at 56% capacity.
A year ago on April 1, 2024, supplies were at 34.7% capacity, more than 20% less than current water levels.
Although this is a relief to the millions of people that rely on the Cutzamala for its water, Conagua data shows that the current situation is considerably below average. In 2020, supplies were at 73.3% capacity and, in 2019, the Cutzamala was 82% full.
Mexico City’s annual rainy season, which typically runs from May through to September, can be fickle. It was nearly two months late in arriving last year, prompting real concerns that Mexico City could face a Day Zero.
While the 56.4% figure at the beginning of April is somewhat reassuring, Conagua reported that 5.98 million cubic meters of water was drawn out of the reservoirs during the last week of March. At the same time, no precipitation had been recorded across the extent of the system, which stretches northwest across México state and into the state of Michoacán.
Increasing temperatures related to successive heat waves had seen water demand rise in March from 8.64 cubic meters-per-second to 10.95 cubic meters per second.
On March 25, the Water Basin Organization of the Valley of Mexico (OCAVM) said the Cutzamala system was at 57.2% of capacity, down from 64% in December and nearly 67% in November.
As such, Conagua warns that the panorama remains delicate, especially if the threat of drought rises again. For now, however, Mexico’s Drought Monitor reported that none of Mexico City’s 16 boroughs was experiencing drought.
In early 2024, much of Mexico was suffering severe drought conditions and extreme heat, and Mexico City was no exception. The capital experienced an all-time high temperature of 34.3 C on May 9, 2024, then set a new record of 34.7 C on May 25 of the same year.
Additionally, the four-decade-old Cutzamala system is aging badly and earthquakes have caused damage to the pipes. Studies show that more than 40% of the system’s water is lost through leaks.
In the middle of last year’s crisis, authorities turned off the spigots for several hours to repair a leak in a control valve.
City officials continue to work on responses to the looming water crisis.
On Dec. 30, Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada announced plans to halve the capital’s on the Cutzamala reservoir system for the next two years.
As part of the plan, Brugada inaugurated a water purification plant that will provide jugs of purified water at reduced price to low-income families who reside in areas — such as the boroughs of Iztapalapa and Xochimilco — that suffer chronic water shortages.
With reports from Excelsior, El Economista, Posta and La Jornada
