Abstract

CERVERA GOMEZ, Luis Ernesto  and  RUBIO SALAS, Rodolfo. Basic criteria for a sustainable water management at the U.S.-Mexico border: the case of Ambos Nogales. Estud. front [online]. 2003, vol.4, n.7, pp.35-60. ISSN 2395-9134.

This article is aimed to analyze some basic criteria for a sustainable use of water in an international watershed shared between Mexico and the United States. The study area comprises the region of Ambos Nogales, which is located inside the Upper Santa Cruz River Basin. This portion of the watershed represents the main ecosystem and the main source of water for urban and rural populations located at this region. Following criteria of sustainability the authors are retaking and adapting a set of guidelines proposed by the Pacific Institute for Studies in Development, Environment, and Security, to the case of Ambos Nogales; this guidelines refers the next elements: basic water requirement to maintain human health; basic water requirement to maintain the health of ecosystems; water quality to meet certain minimum standards; human actions and the long-term renewability of freshwater stocks and flows; the collection of data on water resources, use and quality; institutional mechanisms to prevent and resolve conflicts; and a democratic process of water planning and decision making. These twin cities have a long history of cooperation and conflict linked to water resources. This fact makes available enough information to create a kind of diagnostic about the water management inside a binational arena, allowing this fact to explore possibilities for a better water resources management under a sustainable regime from an international perspective.

Keywords : Sustainability; Binational Water Management; Ambos Nogales Region.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in English     · English ( pdf )