Mexico City, Mexico

Mexico City is located in the central highlands of Mexico at an altitude of over 2000 m. The city is the most important economic and cultural center in the country. The urban agglomeration with more than 15 million people is one of the largest on earth. The unbridled growth of the city has led to problems that cannot be solved, including the emergence of slums and air pollution that is difficult to bear.

Mexico City was built on the ruins of Tenochtitlán, the capital of the Aztecs, and has many historical and modern monuments. Its historical center has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

According to Countryaah, Mexico City (Ciudad de México or Mexico City), the capital of Mexico, is located at an altitude of about 2200 m in a wide, from z. Basins in the central highlands of Mexico are framed by mountains, some of which are more than 5000 m high (picture 1) Due to the altitude, the city has moderate temperatures without large annual fluctuations, clear air and high solar radiation.

As the capital, Mexico City is also the country’s outstanding economic and cultural center. Within the walls of the city are the national university founded in 1551 and eight other universities, six scientific academies, the national library, the national museum and other important museums. It is also the heart of Mexican industry.

Urban development

With almost 10 million residents, Mexico City is by far the largest city in the United Mexican States. Officially, almost 20 million people live in the urban agglomeration that forms the city with its satellite towns. This makes it one of the largest metropolitan areas on earth.

The high population growth of Mexico City has continued for decades. This increase, which is exceptional even for developing countries, is due on the one hand to the large birth surplus. The main cause of this is mainly young, job-seeking immigrants between the ages of 15 and 35, who come from all over the country. On the other hand, the immigration of destitute families from the countryside has continued for decades. The rural exodus is the result of unequal ownership, unfavorable living conditions and the increasing impoverishment of the Mexican rural population.

The unbridled growth of the city has created huge agglomeration problems that have not yet been overcome:

• The housing shortage in the city has to the emergence of ever-increasing large-scale slums (slums out), especially in the peripheral areas of the city. Some of them are created illegally on the already few ecologically valuable areas.
• Almost 50% of Mexican industrial production comes from around 30,000 factories in the city. However, immigration increases unemployment and underemployment, which leads to the impoverishment of many families.
• The air pollution has grown through the urban industry and car traffic unbearable. As the oxygen content of the air is lower due to the altitude and the formation of ozone is increased, the city is one of the world’s most polluted areas.
• The metropolis’s water needs can now only be met by pipelines. In the slums there are not even water connections, so the hygienic conditions are unworthy. The city is not only completely overwhelmed when it comes to the water supply. The rest of the infrastructure (traffic routes, power supply and sewage disposal, hospitals and educational institutions) is hopelessly overloaded.

The country’s government has launched a program against air pollution and decided to outsource administration and operations after the devastating earthquake of 1985 – but the real relief for the city can only be achieved by long-term elimination of its causes, the end of immigration through the Improving living conditions in the countryside.

Cityscape

Mexico City was built on the ruins of the Aztec capital Tenochtitlán. The historical center, shaped by the coexistence of different cultures, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Constitution Square, known as the Zócalo, in the immediate center lies on a drained lake. This lake was home to their famous floating gardens in Aztec times. Splendid temples and palaces stood on its banks. Some of the materials used to build the historical buildings around the square come from: the cathedral, which was built until 1667, and the magnificent town hall from the 18th century.

The National Palace from 1523, which was rebuilt several times, stands on the foundations of the palace of MOCTEZUMA II, a king of the Aztecs. In addition to the sacred buildings from many different eras, Mexico City is also rich in buildings of modern architecture, such as the university library with its richly decorated mosaic facade or the Olympic Stadium, where the 1968 Summer Games took place.