Rio Grande Regional Water Planning Group (Region M)

Petition to President Obama on Mexico Water Deficit

Texans for Treaty Compliance have launched a website dedicated to the Mexico water deficit and a petition asking President Obama to intervene in resolving the issues. The petition calls on the President to enforce the Rio Grande Water Treaty with Mexico and demand repayment of the water deficit to the United States that is: 1) Crippling South Texas agriculture and related businesses; 2) Jeopardizing municipal water supplies; and 3) Further compromising habitat for fish, birds and other wildlife, including 131 threatened or endangered species in the region. 15 May 2013

Battle for H2O

"The supply of fresh water in the Rio Grande Valley ebbs and flows radically as weather cycles between tropical downpours and prolonged periods of drought. Despite recent rains it seems the long dry spell could not get much worse. Joe Barrera knows it can get much worse. He is the regional water authority district manager and he worries every day for the future of water in the valley…" Action 4 News, 14 May 2013

Bill seeks to address Mexico water deficit

"Federal legislation has been filed that would prevent the U.S. government from extending benefits to Mexico in an attempt to get the U.S. State Department more involved in the ongoing water-sharing dispute between the two countries..." McAllen Monitor, 15 May 2013

Cornyn Files Amendment to Help Address Texas Water Shortage, Engage Mexico on Treaty Compliance

U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) introduced an amendment to the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) reauthorization to address Mexico’s failure to take action to uphold its water obligations to the U.S. under the 1944 Treaty (Utilization of Waters of the Colorado and Tijuana Rivers and of the Rio Grande Treaty), contributing to Texas’ growing water shortage. Read the full press release here. 14 May 2013

TCEQ Launches Mexican Water Deficit Website

TCEQ has created a new web section to act as a one-stop portal for up-to-date facts about to the Mexico water deficit and resulting water shortages. The site provides "[d]ocuments and information pertaining to the TCEQ's position on Rio Grande water distribution between the United States and Mexico." Featured items include an issue summary, copies of official resolutions and correspondence, and links to relevant entities and data. 10 May 2013

Hidalgo County wants regional water efforts

"Hidalgo County governments are working to build uniform plans to conserve more water now and expand future availability. County and city officials met Thursday to discuss the lingering drought and identify ways they can work together. Oscar Montoya, the county’s emergency management coordinator, said the information sharing allowed them to begin work on regional proposals…” McAllen Monitor, 10 May 2013

Water Fights Flare

"'We are going to defend our water with bullets,' declared farmers in Chihuahua’s El Sauz-Encinillas Valley. Small growers in the agricultural region located near the state capital of Chihuahua City are demanding that state and federal authorities put a brake on the over-extraction of groundwater..." Frontera NorteSur, 7 May 2013

Water Crisis: Historic crop losses possible in the Texas Rio Grande Valley

"In spite of significant but short-lived rain in late April, an escalating water shortage in Deep South Texas has most farmers comparing this early crop year to 2006 crop when the Lower Rio Grande Valley region suffered an estimated $50 million dollars in crop losses. In fact, over two years of serious drought and an overdue delivery of water from Mexico that has caused additional water shortages have left both dryland producers and farmers who rely on irrigation wondering if 2013 crop losses will exceed historic levels, perhaps reaching as high as $100 million by the end of the year…" Southwest Farm Press, 3 May 2013

Special Report: Water in the RGV

"Water, it's a precious resource. Several parts of the Rio Grande Valley are in jeopardy of running out of this life-giving liquid for two main reasons the current drought conditions and Mexico's failure to deliver water under the 1944 International Water Treaty..." WATCH VIDEO, KVEO, 2 May 2013

Despite rain, South Texas crop losses could hit $100 million

"Despite drenching rains April 28, drought-stricken row crops growers in the Lower Rio Grande Valley may be in for another disastrous year, possibly doubling their $50 million drought losses of 2006, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service experts in Weslaco..." AgriLife Today, 1 May 2013

Cornyn Calls on Obama to Address Looming Water Shortage with President Nieto on Mexico Trip

"U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) today called on President Obama to address the looming threat of water shortages in Texas during his visit with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto: 'The water debt and uncertainty about supply harms Texas farmers, ranchers, and small businesses who rely on regular, reliable sources of water...'" Read full press release, 2 May 2013

Regional water authority board to fund media blitz dinging Mexico over water treaty

"U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela Jr., D-Brownsville, said he has no assurance that President Barack Obama will discuss the water debt owed to Texas farmers when he meets with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto today in Mexico City. Vela said it is unfair that the United States has always complied with the 1944 Water Treaty, always releasing required amounts of water from the Colorado River into the Rio Grande, while Mexico ignores its obligations..." Rio Grande Guardian, 2 May 2013

Third year of drought threatens South Texas crops

"Farmers in the Texas Coastal Bend who were lucky enough to get crops out of the ground this spring could still make an average or a little less than average crop if they get something close to normal rainfall for the rest of the growing season..." Southwest Farm Press, 30 April 2013

Opinion: Mexico must release more water

"Perhaps residents in the parched Rio Grande Valley should just do a rain dance. It might prove more fruitful than ongoing federal negotiations to persuade Mexico to release more water from the Rio Grande. Those negotiations have yet to produce much of anything, and there is no resolution in sight..." San Antonio Express-News, 30 April 2013

Barrera: Mexico must pay its water debt

"The Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas is suffering the effects of extreme drought from two sources: natural and manmade. There’s not much that can be done about a lack of rainfall, but when drought is exacerbated by political decisions, something can and should be done. A good time to start is when President Barack Obama is scheduled to meet with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto in Mexico City on Thursday." Read full op-ed column in the Austin American-Statesman, 29 April 2013

2016 Regional Water Plan DRAFT Municipal Population and Demand Projections Support Material

Region M is currently conducting a regional water planning study for the Texas Water Development Board as part of our ongoing regional water planning efforts. Water User Groups and Wholesale Water Providers in the Region M planning area will soon receive an email and/or mail-out survey that will focus on municipal demands, contractual obligations to sell or receive water, and infrastructure capacity. Survey responses will help Region M evaluate the TWDB-provided projections, found in the following list, for use in the 2016 regional water plan.

Lower Rio Grande Basin Study

The Bureau of Reclamation and the Rio Grande Regional Water Authority (RGRWA) and its 53 member entities, in collaboration with the Texas Region M Planning Group, Texas Water Development Board, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), and International Boundary and Water Commission, are conducting a basin study to evaluate the impacts of climate variability and change on water supply imbalances within an eight county region along the U.S./Mexico border in south Texas.

Rio Grande Regional Water Planning Group

Stewards of Water Resources from Amistad to the Gulf

What's New with Region M