Abstract

DIAZ CARAVANTES, Rolando Enrique; BRAVO PENA, Luis Carlos; ALATORRE CEJUDO, Luis Carlos  and  SANCHEZ FLORES, Erick. Anthropogenic pressure on groundwater in Mexico: a geographical approach. Invest. Geog [online]. 2013, n.82, pp.93-103. ISSN 2448-7279.

In this study we identified regions with the highest anthropogenic pressure on groundwater in Mexico. The information used to identify these areas was based on the 314,292 groundwater rights specified by the National Water Commission (CONAGUA). In the research we calculated three indicators, represented as Kernel density maps, which show the spatial distribution of the groundwater rights. The indicators: a) geographic density of wells, b) concessioned volume, and c) drilling depth, describe separately different components of human pressure on groundwater and allow to generate a combined pressure mapping on the aquifers of Mexico. The results of this work must be complemented with regional hydrogeological studies that indicate accurately the disturbance of aquifers by groundwater extraction, however, the results reveal themselves a very high pressure in the regions of El Bajio, la Comarca Lagunera and the midwest of Chihuahua. These findings are discussed from a geographic perspective, demonstrating the usefulness of incorporating environmental indicators to assess the pressure on water resources in the country.

Keywords : Anthropogenic pressure; groundwater; Mexico; water rights.

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