Water Technology in the Paper Industry in the Valley of Mexican Basin

Abstract

This article identifies the technological characteristics of the paper manufacturing industry in the Valley of Mexican Basin (VMB)-a densely populated region characterized by absolute water scarcity-in order to quantify the intensity with which water is used. The method consisted of modeling the paper industry's technology estimating Cobb-Douglas production functions at two moments in time. The comparison of both functions makes it possible to identify water saving technologies during this period, and to evaluate whether the industry has made adjustments to deal with water restrictions. The data is obtained from the Economic Censuses of the National Institute of Statistics Geography and Informatics 2009 and 2014. While our work must be considered preliminary owing to the somewhat irregular nature of the data, certain clear conclusions do stand out. The paper industry located in the VMB has drastically reduced its water usage during the period of time analyzed. This is explained by the adoption of water saving technologies in the industry. In the process, an increase in capital is the main variable to explain such a technical change. This is expressed in the manner in which water and capital inputs appear to be highly suitable substitutes in paper manufacturing.

Effects of Urbanization on Extreme Climate Indices in the Valley of Mexico Basin

“…However, according to the results in Table 6, this only happens for the indices FD, WSDI5, CSDI5, TMm, TNm, HDDheat18, and GDDgrow10. Part of the explanation for this discrepancy could be due to the sizeable difference between the number of suburban stations (10) and the number of urban (44) and rural stations (36). The most contrasting values in the average of the statistically significant trends of the urban stations with the rural ones are somehow expressed by the magnitude of the value of the urban rate of change.…”

“…The VMB has a total area of 9738 km 2 and covers CDMX and different regions of the states of Mexico, Hidalgo, and Tlaxcala [43]. CDMX is one of the most densely populated regions in the world, with approximately 22 million people in an approximate area of 7850 km 2 , and 97% of the population is concentrated in the basin [44,45]. CDMX has an average altitude of 2240 m above sea level (m a.s.l.)…”

“…[45]. However, overpopulation is not the only problem currently affecting the area; it also faces one of the greatest pressures regarding water resources in the world [44]. Economically, approximately one-third of the entire Gross Domestic Product at the national level is generated in this region [44].…”