May 2, 2013
Press Release

 

In Case You Missed It…

Today, the Brownsville Herald published an editorial cartoon urging President Obama to discuss the water crisis with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto during their summit on immigration reform in Mexico City today.

Last month, Congressman Filemon Vela (D-Brownsville) was joined by South Texas Congressmen Rubén Hinojosa, Henry Cuellar, Pete Gallego, and Beto O’Rourke in sending a letter on April 11th to President Obama requesting his immediate assistance on the matter and that he discuss the issue directly with President Peña Nieto.

The letter stated,
 

“We respectfully request you take immediate action to ensure deliveries of Rio Grande water that will give Texas border communities the water they need and that they are owed. If sufficient water is not flowing by early May when you travel to Mexico to meet with president Enrique Peña Nieto, we urge you to raise this issue directly with him.”

Congressman Vela also held a press conference yesterday in Weslaco to discuss the ongoing water crisis in South Texas and Mexico’s failure to uphold its obligations under the 1944 Water Treaty. He pointed out that even though Mexico is not in compliance with their water delivery obligations in the Rio Grande Valley, the United States has made its deliveries along the California-Arizona-New Mexico portion of the border like clockwork.

Under the 1944 Water Treaty, Mexico is obligated to release an average of 350,000 acre-feet of water per year to the Rio Grande, averaged over a 5-year period. However, they currently owe more than 400,000 acre-feet, leaving South Texas cities, residents, and farmers in desperate need of water.

 

 

 

 
Issues:
Energy and Environment, Local Issues