Good News on the Water Front

So much negative news around these days, here’s some good news:

The water in the two reservoirs that feed the Rio Grande Valley is up almost six percent now compared to the same time period last year — 24.83 percent vs. 19.07 percent.

For some people, that may not seem like a big deal, but in parched South Texas, that’s a huge gain, relatively speaking. Especially for an area that stretches from Amistad, approximately 200 miles northwest of Laredo, near Del Rio, to the mouth of the Rio Grande, where it empties into the Gulf of (pick a name).

Rains that went into the north-central part of Mexico last March helped, and the local rains that fell last month and this month directly into Falcon only added to the positive news.

Considering that 95 percent of the water used in the RGV comes from the Rio Grande, every inch of water in the two reservoirs, increase or decrease, is either cause for concern, more concern, or thanks.

When it comes to the state of water storage, the man with most of the answers is “ Sonny” Hinojosa, who served as Watermaster for Hidalgo County Irrigation District #2 for 28 years, going back to 1993, when NAFTA and the entire border region were ready to take off.

Before his stint with #2, Hinojosa worked with the river watermaster for eight years. He is still employed with #2, but no longer serves as GM. In a way, he has become lead “ Water Advocate” for the Rio Grande Valley, AKA, the newly branded RioPlex.

Indeed, over the past 28 years, almost 30, the population in Hidalgo County has basically tripled, from approximately 279,000 in 1990 compared to approximately 840,000 in 2020, per the U. S. Census.

The 1944 Water Treaty

Over time, the only thing that’s remained consistent is Mexico’s refusal to live up to its end of the 1944 Water Treaty, which was thought to have changed earlier this year. Even when it had the water in the six tributaries that feed Falcon, it rarely released the water. Not unless its own water storage tanks were bursting at the seams.

Earlier this year, the Trump Administration informed Mexico that if it didn’t start releasing water to the thirsty people, farmers, citrus growers in the RGV, per the 1944 Water Treaty, then the U.S. was going to start holding back the water it owed Mexico in the land that stretches from west of El Paso to the Pacific.

That was the plan.

In other words, year after year, the U.S. has held up its side of the bargain by sending Mexico water from our Colorado River basin, while allowing Mexico to default on its agreement.

According to Hinojosa, though, so far, Mexico has only delivered a token water gesture, if you will. Meaning, to say that Mexico is complying with the new water agreement — that would be true but not altogether correct.

“Back, what, May 3rd,” said Hinojosa, “I think Mexico transferred 56,750 acre-feet that was in storage. And they continued, later that month, late May, another 10,000 acre-feet, and then in June, 10,000 acre-feet.”

Meaning, more water than we would have received in past years before D.C. used the Colorado River water as leverage, but not nearly enough to shore up our local ag/citrus industry.

“So, we’re expecting, hopefully, something similar for July. (When the final numbers are tallied.) It's not much,” said Hinojosa. “In fact, I just spoke to someone in D.C. Friday (July 18), and they were disappointed to say, ‘Hey, well, Mexico is supposed to be delivering all this water.’ And I said, ‘Well, they’re delivering water, but it doesn’t even cover the municipal needs. We use 22,000 to 23,000 acre-feet for industrial use. And when Mexico is sending or transferring 10,000 acre-feet, agriculture is not benefiting.”

The current five-year cycle tied to the 1944 Water Treaty ends this October.

“And here we are,” said Hinojosa, “what, three months away, just a little over 90 days to the end of the five-year cycle, and Mexico’s still behind, I think 990-something thousand acre-feet.”

At least the story started out on a positive note.

Stay tuned.