There are many environmental problems that affect our planet. Some countries are affected to a greater extent than others due to various factors such as their geographical location, their territorial organization, their level of development, their culture and, above all, the environmental concern and awareness of their inhabitants. One of the countries that suffers the most from the consequences of a major environmental problem is Mexico. Do you want to know what they are? In Green Ecologist we tell you the Mexico's main environmental problems, its causes and consequences.
Air pollution
In 1992, Mexico City was declared the most polluted city worldwide by the United Nations, this being the best known environmental problem in the country. There are two causes that have caused the existence of this problem. First of all the air pollution due to the emission of gases from large industries and factories or means of transport and, secondly, the lack of control or legislation that helps regulate these emissions. In fact, Mexican regulations regarding emission limits for polluting particles are outdated, being excessively permissive.
The effects of this environmental problem They are the exposure of the inhabitants to significant levels of polluting particles with the consequent appearance of respiratory diseases, or the absorption of metals such as lead and cadmium, metals that can generate:
- Insomnia
- Soft spot.
- Renal problems.
- Stomach aches
- Among many other symptoms.
Deforestation
In the list of speed or rhythm in deforestation worldwide, Mexico occupies the fifth position, losing some 500,000 hectares of jungles and forests each yearor as a result of the construction of houses, urban centers, factories and industries or cultivation areas.
Deforestation, in turn, leads to other environmental problems such as soil erosion or the loss of the ecosystem as a whole, since the elimination of the characteristic plant species of tropical forests implies the habitat loss and modification of many other animal species.
Water contamination
Mexico is one of the countries where, unfortunately, more chemical spills occur to the environment. Just as environmental legislation is permissive in terms of atmospheric emissions, it is also permissive in terms of control of discharges. Some facts that reflect this carelessness or lack of control are the 40,000 liters of sulfuric acid that were dumped into the Sonora River in 2014 or the oil spill produced in the Hondo River that same year illegally. Furthermore, in Mexico, water pollution is not only due to large industries or factories, but the home drainage system also ends in rivers, lakes and beaches.
The most obvious consequences are the destruction of aquatic ecosystems, reefs, mangroves and wetlands, the loss of water quality and damage to the health of animals and humans.
Biodiversity loss
This environmental problem is a consequence of the previous ones, air and water pollution and deforestation have led to the loss o modification of the habitat of many species, some of which manage to adapt, while others are barely able to survive being found today in danger of extinction. Some examples are:
- The jaguar: It is a characteristic animal of the tropical forests of Mexico, being an important symbol in Mexican culture. However, despite their consideration and admiration, only about 4,000 copies are preserved in the country.
- Teporingo: it is a small rabbit, located in high areas where forests are abundant. However, due to deforestation its species has declined considerably in recent years.
- Vaquita marina: It is the smallest cetacean in the world and it is not only in danger of extinction in the country of Mexico, but also worldwide, with only about 50 specimens.
- Axolotl: It is an endemic amphibian of the lake complex of the Valley of Mexico, being very influential in Mexican culture. It is a very peculiar animal because it retains youthful features in its adult stage due to a very slow development rate. It is in a critical state of conservation due to water pollution.
- Naked-tailed armadillo: it is only found in the forests of eastern Chiapas and is at risk of becoming extinct, due to deforestation and the absurd fact that the inhabitants of the area consider it a harmful or harmful animal, so when they come across it, they just kill it.
- Tapir: It is a mammal similar to a wild boar, which is in danger of extinction due, mainly to the deforestation of its habitat, being unable to move due to its anatomical characteristics in terms of agility and weight, currently extending about 1500 specimens.
Some other species that are in danger of extinction due to environmental problems in Mexico are the ocelot, the trigrillo, the prairie dog, the Guerrero croquette hummingbird, the Mexican tamandua, the West Indian manatee, the spider monkey. , the red macaw, the golden eagle, the loggerhead turtle and the Mexican gray wolf.
If you want to read more articles similar to Main environmental problems in Mexico, we recommend that you enter our Pollution category.
