Studying ancient water management in Monte Alban, Mexico, to Solvewater issues, improve urban living, and protect heritage in the present

Abstract

In the past, between the sixth century BCE and the ninth century CE, the Zapotec people managed rainwater in Monte Albán, in the state of Oaxaca, south of Mexico, through terraces, canals, dams, and wells. Water was a keystone of their worldview and ritual practice. Today, this knowledge is in oblivion. Rapid but irregular urbanization threatens the remnants of these water control systems, still hidden on this archaeological hill site. Our ongoing interdisciplinary project, Parque Monte Albán, has centered on the water that flows down the hill and offers new strategies to increase the value and quality of water by revitalizing and redesigning ancient hydraulic technology. In the short and long term, our solutions can restore the natural environment, improve the quality of urban living, and help protect archaeological heritage.