Another Take: Why is Mexico City running out of water?
The Take
Al Jazeera
4.7 • 748 Ratings
🗓️ 12 July 2025
⏱️ 20 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Every Saturday, we revisit a story from the archives. This originally aired on March 12, 2024. None of the dates, titles, or other references from that time have been changed.
Mexico City’s residents are approaching a “day zero” where the government will no longer be able to provide them water. A city that was once built on water is now nearly dried up. How did this happen and what is being done to fix it?
In this episode:
- Alejandra Cuellar (@ale_cuellar), Environmental Reporter, Dialogo Chino
- Addi Palacios, Indigenous Activist
Episode credits:
This episode was updated by Tamara Khandaker. The original production team was Chloe K. Li, Negin Owliaei, Ashish Malhotra, and our host Malika Bilal.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Aya Elmileik is lead of audience engagement. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer, and Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.
Connect with us:
@AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, Facebook, Threads and YouTube
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Al Jazeera Podcasts. |
| 0:07.0 | Hey, I'm Tamara Kandacker. |
| 0:12.0 | I'm a producer with the take, back with another take, where we bring you episodes from our archives. |
| 0:18.0 | Mexico City is one of the most popular destinations in the world for tourists and remote workers. |
| 0:26.6 | And with that popularity has come growing resentment. |
| 0:29.6 | Locals are finding it harder and harder to live in the city, as rents skyrocket and long-time |
| 0:36.6 | residents are pushed out of their own neighborhoods. |
| 0:40.3 | These tensions have been simmering for years, and last week the backlash got violent, with |
| 0:45.6 | a small group of protesters smashing storefront windows and vandalizing cars. |
| 0:51.9 | But the impact of the surge of tourists and remote workers goes beyond culture and housing. |
| 0:58.0 | They've also pushed up demand for water, which Mexico City narrowly avoided running out of last |
| 1:04.3 | year. Years of drought, aging infrastructure, and relentless urban growth had pushed the system to its limits, |
| 1:12.5 | and the crisis isn't over yet. |
| 1:15.2 | In this episode, we looked at the roots of Mexico City's water shortage, |
| 1:20.0 | and who pays the price when the taps run dry? |
| 1:23.8 | It originally aired March 12, 2024. |
| 1:27.7 | All dates and references are from that time. |
| 1:36.0 | Today, a city once filled with lakes and rivers is now in danger of drying up. |
| 1:42.9 | Mexico City, one of the world's most populous cities, |
| 1:45.8 | could be just months away from running out of water. |
| 1:49.4 | Some residents are struggling to bathe and flush their toilets. |
| 1:56.3 | I'm Malika Bilal, and this is the take. |
... |
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