Texas and Mexico share a short 1,254 miles of border down in what is known as the Rio Grande Valley. The area is known for a desert climate, that sometimes falls short on water, which wreaks havoc on farmers in the area. So, in 1944, the United States and Mexico agreed to a treaty, which said Mexico must deliver 1.75 million acre-feet of water into the US every five years, or about 350,000 acre-feet every year.
But as South Texas sits in a devastating drought in recent months, Mexico is not holding up their end of the bargain. The situation has become desperate enough that the two countries have now shook hands on an amendment to the 1944 agreement, with hopes to bring relief to those struggling farmers. It will allow Mexico to meet its delivery obligations by giving up water that was allotted to the country under the treaty.
But Texas State Senator Charles Perry says this is more smoke and mirrors from a Mexican government that is not particularly fond of Texas.
"There is nothing that requires Mexico to honor that...the only way we will get their attention is for the next Administration to make a phone call, and hit their pocketbooks," he says.
Mexico has fallen well short of their end of the deal, with a balance still of over 1.3 million acre-feet needing to be delivered by October 2025. They release the water from six tributaries, but this agreement gives Mexico the option of delivering water it doesn’t need from the San Juan and Alamo rivers.
So, on the surface, it appears to be a good thing. But appearances can be so deceiving.
Embedded in the amendment is also a current offer Mexico has made to give the US 120,000 acre-feet of water. But South Texas farmers have been skeptical, worried that by accepting that, the state will later force farmers to make up for it by giving up water they stored for next year.
But none of this would be a problem if the Biden Administration just enforced the terms of the treaty. Instead, they have let Mexico do what they want, while American farmers suffer.
"There is no recourse, there is no enforcement...they have resources they could have released to mitigate the lack of rainfall our side of the border has had...they just choose not to do it," he says.
Senator Perry says they have asked time and again for Mexico to release water from the San Juan and Alamo Rivers and have been told no. Mexico is straight out not following the treaty, arguably because of both its anger for Texas, and a weak administration.
They did not agree to the amendment until after their elections, wanting to see how their political landscape will shake out. Trump has been notoriously tough on Mexico, and that is one of the big reasons they came to the table: to appear they are taking action. But in reality, they are not and have not been for some time. But that will change in January.
"It will take a phone call along with the border conversation...if you are having a conversation about the border, you need to have a conversation about the water," he says. "It employes the same enforcement tools that I think the next administration will be more than willing to engage."
For now, it appears South Texas farmers will get some relief. But if the track record shows anything, it will be short lived. At least until Mexico gets back in line and honors their end of the bargain.
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