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<br />· . t'pl:h~~-~UUl THU U~:~:J PM UPPEI-{ CO RIVER COMM <br /> <br />e <br /> <br />001961 <br /> <br />FAX NO. 8015319705 <br />e <br /> <br />P. 03 <br /> <br />rights in the Mexicali and San Luis Rio Colorado Valleys can be purchased and <br />used for ecological purposes with the concurrence of local and federal officials. <br /> <br />The second source of water is agricultural runoff from farmland near Yuma, <br />Arizona. Currently, this water is returned to the Colorado River and counted as <br />part of Mexico's 1.5 millionwacre feet treaty entitlement. The report proposes that <br />facilities be constructed to divert these brackish flows directly into targeted <br />ecological areas in Mexico. Mexico would then receive deliveries of an <br />equivalent amount of substitute mainstream Colorado River water to be released <br />from Parker Dam. This change will require the agreement of the United States <br />and Mexico which presumably could be embodied in a new minute to the Treaty. <br /> <br />Construction of the necessary facilities in the United States and Mexico is <br />already being considered by the US Bureau of Reclamation. This source could <br />deliver up to 38,000 acre feet per year of brackish water (2,300 mg/l TDS) that <br />would be used to maintain established wetlands in the Colorado River corridor <br />below the Railroad Bridge and in the Cucapa Complex at the confluence of the <br />Rio Hardy and the Colorado River. <br /> <br />Finally, this report suggests an option for providing periodic "surges" of water that <br />are needed to flush the Delta. The need could be partially addressed by a <br />"predicted runoff' reservoir release strategy similar to that used for beach <br />building releases from Glen Canyon Dam. <br /> <br />The proposals in this report are not substitutes for comprehensive, long-term <br />solutions to the problems of the Delta. Those efforts may take several years. <br />But these measures could constitute important first steps. Moreover, they could <br />help to prevent losses of Delta habitat as other Delta restoration on the short- <br />term, and should encourage even traditional adversaries to seize the opportunity <br />for collaboration. The problems are urgent and both countries will benefit from <br />beginning to solve them now. The recommended measures should result in <br />benefits to both countries and, most importantly, to the ecology of the Delta. <br />