Abstract

GLEASON ESPINDOLA, José Arturo. Towards a sustainable water management in the metropolitan area of Guadalajara. Rev. Mex. Cienc. Agríc [online]. 2011, vol.2, n.spe1, pp.113-126. ISSN 2007-0934.

Water is vital for human survival; this truth is accepted by everyone. However, it faces now the serious trouble of scarcity to meeting the basic needs for human's development and the conservation of ecosystems. Considering this, the international community has established several strategies in order to contravening these problems that have been embodied in documents such as the Agenda XXI and the millennium meanings, which must be gradually implemented to the local realities and with a clear citizen participation ingredient. The metropolitan area of Guadalajara faces the challenge of implementing the strategies through a model that would allow a water management, with a profound respect for the environment, transparency in financial resources management, the efficient operation of a hydraulic system, the implementation of sustainable technologies, the committed participation of the society and an open and inclusive political leadership. This model aims to promote a new culture of water management that would pass through the society and its institutions with the help of three ingredients: institutional change, programs and projects supported by engineering, and social action reflected in educational programs at all levels, in order to encouraging the conservation and use of the resources. This paper contains general information about the current status of the hydraulic system of the metropolitan area of Guadalajara. The hard data that allow to knowing the system and its current problems are emphasized. Once there is an overview of the system, the appropriate approach for presenting the proposition and management of the hydraulic system is done, oriented towards the sustainability. The proposals that would lead the system towards the sustainability include from housing actions by implementing sustainable systems, to the construction of larger infrastructure projects and a deeper change in the water management agencies in the state. These actions need to be conducted by the citizen's participation and a committed coordination by the authorities.

Keywords : infrastructure; sustainability; water management.

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