ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the environmental solar heating standard developed in Mexico City for the commercial sector. Mexico City is the country's capital; it has 8.7 million inhabitants, represents around 22% of the national Gross Domestic Product and is part of the second largest metropolitan area in the world. The solar environmental standard for water heating has been developed only for the Federal District, but it is probable that its success will promote its expansion to the whole metropolitan area. In the early 1990s, Mexico City suffered from episodes of critical levels of tropospheric ozone, carbon monoxide, lead and sulphur dioxide—mainly due to transportation emissions. In 2006, the Mexico City's government drafted its Climate Action Local Strategy—known as ELAC by its Spanish acronym. Mexico is located in the earth's sunbelt where solar energy is plentiful for potential applications of solar energy conversion systems.
