The U.S. and Mexico have agreed to share Colorado River water shortages through 2028 as record-low reservoir conditions continue to strain supplies across the basin.
Under the agreement, U.S. Lower Basin water allocations will be reduced by 1.25 million acre-feet annually in 2027 and 2028. Mexico will take a proportional reduction of 250,000 acre-feet each year. If conditions worsen, the two countries will discuss whether additional reductions are needed in 2028. Minute No. 334, approved by both countries under the 1944 Water Treaty, establishes cooperative Colorado River operating measures for 2027 and 2028.
“This Minute makes sure water is shared fairly among our users and protects the health of the Colorado River during these difficult times,” said U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission Commissioner Chad McIntosh. “Both countries deserve a lot of credit for agreeing to these water reductions and other measures.”
The agreement leaves room to increase Mexico’s water deliveries if conditions improve. If forecasts show Lake Mead could reach 1,125 feet or higher in 2027 or 2028, the two countries will discuss providing Mexico with a proportional share of any additional water available to U.S. users.
It allows Mexico to continue setting aside part of its Colorado River allocation in its Water Reserve for future use.
The agreement establishes a two-year salinity pilot program for 2027 and 2028 that will increase monitoring and coordination between the two countries as water deliveries decline. The program is intended to manage salt concentrations in water delivered to Mexico while limiting impacts to water users and operations on both sides of the border. Officials will collect and share water-quality data, track salinity levels and evaluate whether additional management measures may be needed.
The two countries will also continue studying potential new water supplies, conservation projects and desalination as they look for longer-term ways to stretch the river’s limited supply.
The agreement also includes environmental programs. Both countries, along with a binational coalition of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), will each provide one-third of roughly $5.58 million to maintain existing habitat restoration sites and support scientific research and monitoring in 2027 and 2028. The agreement also calls for NGOs to provide the water needed to maintain those restoration areas.
Jennifer Pitt, Colorado River program director at Audubon, said the agreement will support stewardship of more than 1,300 acres of restored habitat in the Colorado River Delta while continuing a cooperative approach developed through earlier agreements.
“The more water users that share in Colorado River water shortages, the less the burden of those shortages on any one user, sector, or geography,” Pitt said.
The Department of the Interior and Bureau of Reclamation said Minute 334 builds on cooperation between the two countries through shared water reductions, salinity management and continued study of new water supplies and desalination. The agencies said that cooperation will remain central to managing the river’s limited supplies.
“Interior and Reclamation remain focused on collaboration, flexibility and continued work with the seven basin states, the 30 basin Tribal nations, and Mexico to sustain the river for farms and ranches, communities, energy, and natural resources. We will continue to build on today’s progress,” the agencies said. — Charles Wallace, WLJ contributing editor
