MEXICO CITY – Mayor Marcelo Ebrard has declared a water-shortage alert in the Mexican capital, saying the situation could become “extremely serious” by the beginning of 2010 unless 71 million cubic meters (2.5 billion cubic feet) can be saved in the coming months.

Ebrard issued a “yellow” alert, the second-highest of four warning levels.

He said that in Greater Mexico City, with a population of 20 million, “immediate measures are clearly required” to avoid an “extremely serious” situation.

The mayor said low levels of rainfall in 2009 will make it impossible to replenish the reservoirs that supply water to the capital, adding that the situation is expected to persist at least until May 2010.

In addition to the 900 million pesos ($69 million) the federal government plans to invest in the Cutzamala System, a network of dams that accounts for roughly one-fifth of the water used by Mexico City and its surrounding area, the Ebrard administration said it will continue to work to repair leaks in the capital’s water-distribution network.

Experts say some 40 percent of Mexico City’s water is lost due to leaky pipes.

Ebrard said Mexico City has not experienced a comparable situation “for at least 40 years,” adding that the crisis has already forced his administration to start suspending service to those who consume the most.

The mayor said that in the future “everyone will have to have their water savings program” and pledged to accelerate measures to recover water levels to what they had been prior to the crisis.

Residents of the giant metropolis were hit with partial stoppages earlier this year, including a cutoff in April that affected roughly a quarter of Mexico City’s population.

In late July, Mexico City authorities announced an emergency, 10-month water rationing plan aimed at saving 6.68 million cubic meters (235.4 million cubic feet) of water per month, or 3.5 percent of the water consumed by the city and its surrounding area.

The mayor at that time called on citizens to reduce their daily consumption of water, especially spending less time in the shower and making sure that toilet flush valves are working properly.

But Ebrard said then that it was up to federal authorities to invest in the Cutzamala system, maintaining and improving its dams located in the southwestern state of Michoacan and caring for the ecosystems that support that watershed. EFE