Mexico

C

Natural Resources

The mineral resources of Mexico are extremely rich and varied. Almost every known mineral is found, including coal, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, silver, gold, copper, lead, and zinc. Proven oil and natural-gas reserves are enormous, with some of the world’s largest deposits located offshore, in the Bay of Campeche. Forests and woodland, which cover about 24 per cent of the land, contain such valuable woods as mahogany, ebony, walnut, and rosewood. Mexico has some of the largest remaining forest reserves, despite the high levels of deforestation. About 12 per cent of the land is suitable for agriculture, but less than 10 per cent receives enough rainfall for raising crops without irrigation.

D

Plants and Animals

Because of the wide range of temperature, the native flora of Mexico is extremely varied. Cactus, yucca, agave, and mesquite are plentiful in the arid north. The tierra caliente is thickly grown with an immense variety of plants, which form a dense tropical jungle in some areas. The trees in this zone include valuable hardwoods, as well as coconut palms, gum trees, and almond, fig, and olive trees. On the mountain slopes grow oaks, pines, and firs. Arctic vegetation is found at the highest elevations in Mexico.

Mexican fauna also varies according to the climatic zones. Wolves and coyotes are found in the north. The forests on the mountain slopes are inhabited by ocelots, jaguars, peccaries, bears, and pumas. Fur-bearing seals are found on the coasts. A wide variety of reptiles exists, including turtle, iguana, rattlesnake, and lizard. Birds, including sea and game birds, are numerous. Fish are plentiful along the coast and in the river estuaries. Despite this biodiversity many species are on the endangered list.

E

Environmental Concerns

The long coastlines and mostly mountainous terrain of Mexico provide the greatest variety of ecosystems and biotic habitats on Earth. The country's geographical position has resulted in an eclectic mixing of the flora and fauna from both north and south. Mexico follows only Indonesia, Brazil, and Colombia in richness of biodiversity. It has the highest reptile diversity in the world and the second highest mammal diversity. Nearly one-third of Mexico's terrestrial vertebrates are endemic, and about half of the country's plant species are found nowhere else. Fourteen per cent of the world's fish species inhabit Mexican waters. Mexico's burgeoning population and its heavy resource demands, however, have taken a heavy toll on the environment. Agricultural expansion and farming methods are not well controlled. Soil erosion, salinization, and pollution of watercourses and aquifers with farm chemicals are widespread.

The most acute environmental problems occur in Mexico City, the most populous city in the world. A high concentration of industry, traffic, and domestic energy use plus unfavourable geographical and meteorological conditions have resulted in severe air pollution. The situation is improving, however, as the government introduces controls on traffic and industrial emissions.

The rate of deforestation in Mexico is high—0.9 per cent (1990-1996)—and more and more land is being cleared for agriculture. For example, wet tropical forest, which once covered 6 per cent of the country, has been reduced to half that extent. The most threatened habitats are montane broad-leaved forest, mangroves and coastal wetlands, moist tropical forest, dry tropical forest, and arid zones.

Mexico's heritage of environmental protection dates at least as far back in history as Maya culture, when special forest reserves were recognized and farming proceeded according to an ecological framework. Ancient land-management traditions were lost after the conquest of Mexico by Europeans, and degradation proceeded until the late 19th century, when the modern environmental legacy began. By 1992 there were 68 protected areas in Mexico, including 46 national parks, covering approximately 20 per cent of the country's area. But the extent of many such areas is unclear, and the degree of protection varies depending on the classification of the land, the interpretation of the law, and the government's resolve to enforce it. Therefore, only about 2.4 per cent (1997) of the land is actually protected, and many protected sites are still threatened by deforestation, poaching, dumping, mining, overgrazing, and erosion. Six internationally recognized biosphere reserves have been established within Mexico as part of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Man and the Biosphere Program.

Mexico is party to a number of international environmental agreements, including on biodiversity, climate change, desertification, endangered species, hazardous wastes, law of the sea, marine dumping, marine life, nuclear test ban, ozone layer, ship pollution, wetlands, and whaling. Regionally, it is responsible under agreements protecting the Caribbean Sea and the Convention on Nature Protection and Wildlife Preservation in the western hemisphere.

III

Population

The Mexican population is composed of three main groups: the people of Spanish descent, the Native Americans, and the people of mixed Spanish and Native American ancestry, or mestizos. The mestizos are by far the largest group, constituting about 60 per cent of the population. The Native Americans total about 30 per cent and those people of Spanish descent 9 per cent. The society is semi-industrialized and some 71 per cent of the population lives in urban areas.

A

Population Characteristics

Mexico has a population of 108,700,890 (2007 estimate); the population density is 57 people per sq km (146 per sq mi).