Mexico City, January 9 2025.
I. National Water Plan 2024-2030
1. In the morning conference dated November 21, 2024, the President of Mexico and the General Director of the National Water Commission (hereinafter, “CONAGUA”) conducted the presentation of the National Water Plan 2024-2030 that seeks to establish the objectives, strategies, and actions necessary to face the drought and scarcity problems suffered in Mexico, and thus achieve the goals of the National Development Plan -presented last January 3, 2025-.
2. The main goal of the National Water Plan is the recognition of water as a national asset and a human right. To this end, four guiding principles are specified, which are: (i) water policy and national sovereignty; (ii) justice and access to water; (iii) mitigation of environmental impact and adaptation to climate change; and (iv) comprehensive and transparent management of resources.
3. Among the most important aspects of the plan are:
- Review and management of water concessions. CONAGUA will carry out an inspection program throughout the country to have visibility over the concessions granted and avoid overexploitation and inequitable access to national waters, having the power to reduce the volumes granted when they are not being used, as well as regularizing expired concessions that comply with the established requirements.
In this sense, the industries must have clarity regarding the volumes of water being used in comparison with those granted and determine whether they are in a situation of exception of expiration. - Database: Substitution of the Public Registry of Water Rights with the new National Registry of Water for Wellbeing.
- Administrative simplification and digitalization. All procedures will be carried out digitally, through the platform Agua para el Bienestar.
- Legal reforms. There are plans to reform the National Water Law and enact the General Water Law, both focused on reaffirming the legal nature of water as a common good.
- Promotion of programs. The National Modernization Program will be promoted to improve agricultural irrigation infrastructure through modernization, as well as the development of the Master Infrastructure Plan to optimize existing infrastructure and plan for necessary projects. This includes 16 strategic projects such as dams, desalination plants, aqueducts, protection works, and more.
- Sanitation of rivers. The sanitation and ecological restoration of rivers will be carried out, giving priority to the three most polluted rivers in the country: Lerma-Santiago, Atoyac, and Tula.
- National Agreement for the Human Right to Water and Sustainability. The objective is to tackle the water stress currently being experienced in Mexico through the coordinated work of the Government, representatives of the agricultural, livestock, industrial, social, and academic sectors, as well as other strategic stakeholders.
II. National Agreement for the Human Right to Water and Sustainability.
1. The Agreement was published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on December 19, 2024, marking the first step concerning the guiding principles of the National Water Plan.
The Parties to the Agreement commit to implement a series of actions to guarantee the water right, as well as to execute the necessary legal instruments. In this regard, the Agreement highlights the following key points:
- Access to water as a human right for all.
- Sustainable management of water resources and protection of ecosystems.
- Coordinated public policies at the federal, state, and municipal levels.
- Social participation in decision making.
- Fairness in access, prioritizing vulnerable communities.
- Improvements in infrastructure for water distribution and treatment.
- Water education and culture.
- Technological innovation for efficient use.
- Adaptation to climate change in water management.
2. In this sense, several districts, irrigation units, and industries, such as Grupo Lala, have committed to voluntarily returning the allocated and concessioned waters that are not being used to the property of the Federal Government.
III. Initiative of General Water Law.
1. On November 12, 2024, the initiative with the Draft Decree that issues the General Water Law and abrogates the National Water Law was submitted.
The proposed General Water Law focuses on reaffirming the legal nature of water as a common good, limiting the transfer of national water rights, changes of use, and recalibrating the figure of the guaranteed quota as a means of interrupting the risk of expiration of unused volumes of national waters.
2. It is worth noting that in the presentation of the National Water Plan 2024-2030, the President of Mexico and the General Director of CONAGUA expressly mentioned that the intended strategy is to reform the National Water Law and issue the General Water Law, implying that both bodies of law will coexist.
IV. Conclusions.
1. The water shortage that has affected Mexico in recent years has triggered a water crisis, which is why access to resources in adequate and sufficient quantity and quality has become a priority for the Mexican Government.
2. In this sense, the National Water Plan 2024-2030 -which has not been published as of this moment- is a milestone in understanding the steps to be taken by the present administration in the water sector.
For this reason, it is essential that the industries take into consideration the objectives and goals established in the public policy promoted by the government on water issues, to coordinate the corresponding compliance.
At Basham, Ringe y Correa, S.C., we are ready to advise you on any issue related to regulatory, environmental, and national water matters.
Sincerely,
Juan Carlos Serra Campillo
Jesús Manuel Colunga Victoria
César Augusto Reyes López
Marina Fernández Lozano
mfernandez@basham.com.mx
