|
<br />UUU732
<br />
<br />'360
<br />
<br />
<br />to be subject to and consistent with the water allocations of the other water allocation and operatioi1'l~WJ;
<br />controlling the major federal reservoirs. , ' '.' C()::
<br />
<br />Mexican Federal Law ... .,."
<br />The Colorado River in Mexico is declared in the Mexican Constitution as part of Mexico's naJi<shaf
<br />waters. Thus, jurisdiction over natural resource protection and administration is vestedaJmii.~F
<br />exclusively in the federal government, through the Secretariat of the Enviromnent, Natural Resow(:;.e~,~nd::
<br />Fisheries (SEMARNAP). One agency within SEMARNAP, the National Water Commission{~A:):;~"
<br />builds potable water, sanitation, wastewater treatment, and irrigation, drainage and flood control syst~/
<br />CNA also administers water right permits. The CNA administers a number of non.profit irrigaB9iX~{
<br />districts in the Delta, which distribute water to ejidos, or communal farms, which were established b}/ilit'"
<br />federal government. The National Institute of Ecology(INE) implements enviromnental program&.".:;U"
<br />
<br />In 1993, President Salinas established the Upper; Gulf of California and Colorado River Delta Bi08l>..
<br />Reserve, comprising about 2.3 inillion acres. The Reserve was established to promote sustainable use'
<br />ecological integrity of the Delta area. A Core Area, including the Cienega de Santa Clara, is IIiQ;
<br />intensively managed, and uses restricted. . .
<br />
<br />Mexican State Law
<br />As indicated above, there is little jurisdictional authority vested ~n the states of Baja California ari~.
<br />Sonora on water management in the Delta. There is a movement, however, toward the establishment()f
<br />local watershed councils.
<br />
<br />International Law
<br />The Treaty of February 3, 1944 guaranteed an annual delivery of 1.5 million acre feet of water per year,'
<br />from the United States to Mexico, plus an additional 200,000 acre feet in years determined by the
<br />Secretary of the Interior to be surplus. The Treaty also changed the name ofthe preexisting International
<br />Boundary Commission to the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC). The mWG
<br />maintains the boundary, allocates transboundary water resources, constructs sewage and sanitation worla!,
<br />and resolves treaty water quality and quantity disputes. Under Minute 242 to the 1944 Treaty, the U.S.
<br />obligated itself to maintain an annual average salinity at Morelos Dam in. Mexico of no more than 115
<br />pprn plus or'minus 30 ppmover the annual average salinity of the Colorado River at Imperial Dam in the
<br />United States.
<br />
<br />U.S.-Mexican Agreements
<br />In 1983, the U.S. and Mexico entered into the Border Enviromnental Cooperation Agreement (the La paz
<br />Agreement), which created binational workgroups to deal with border environmental issues such as air,
<br />hazardous waste, water, pollution prevention, contingency planning and emergency response. The 1991
<br />Integrated Border Environmental Plan and 1996 Border XXI revised the La Paz Agreement.
<br />
<br />In 1997, Secretary of the Interior Babbitt and SEMARNAP Secretary Carabias executed a letter of intent,
<br />to expand cooperative activities in the conservation of contiguous protected areas in the Border Zone. In
<br />May 2000, Secretaries Babbitt and Carabias entered into a Joint Declaration, calling for increased
<br />cooperation, coordinated policy development, researth, increased information exchange, development of
<br />environmentally sustainable strategies, and the formulation of public participation programs.
<br />
<br />Recent Events on the Colorado River "
<br />For almost 10 years, the six Colorado River states other than California have expressed concern about
<br />California's dependence on surplus Colorado River flows declared by the Secretary. California agencies
<br />have agreed on the programs necessary to transfer conserved agricultural water to municipal use, and
<br />reduce that dependence. The states also agreed to proposed interim surplus guidelines, by which the
<br />
|