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OG2253 46jFriedkin In subsequent meetings, the Committee of Fourteen seemed to recognize that unless the United States alleviated the salinity problem, it might have to defend a case brought by Mexico before an international tribunal or an international arbitration panel. Thus, the Committee eventually supported efforts to control salinity, so long as they minimized the re- lease of stored waters and did not impair operations in the Wellton-Mohawk District. This was the basis for Minute No. 2IS. Over the five year period of the agreement salinity of de- liveries to Mexico was reduced only about 15 ppm a year. The Committee then recognized that more reductions would be re- quired. It ultimately agreed to a proposal that would have re- sulted in the average annual salinity of the deliveries to Mex- ico being approximately the same as if the WeIlton-Mohawk District were operating in salt balance. Under this "equivalent salt balance" approach, the quantity of salts discharged in the drainage waters would approximately equal the quantity of salts in the waters being diverted to the District. The result~ng annual average salinity of deliveries to Mexico would have been about 1,140 ppm. However, the Mexican negotiators would not accept the United States' proposal as a permanent solution when it was made in late 1971 as they considered the reduction too small. These circumstances formed the background for the June, 1972, meeting in which President Echeverria told Presi- dent Nixon that Mexico's treaty allotment of Colorado River water should be of "the same quality as those diverted to United States userS at Imperial Dam." Given President Nixon's directive and tlle circumstances that existed in 1974, it appears that there was no better solu- tion available than the one that was reached. It was clear that any solution would require elimination of the adverse effects of Wellton-Mohawk drainage waters delivered to Mexico, and would have to protect Colorado River Basin states against /iny loss of water or other resources. In retrospect. however, it ap- pears that there were at least two opportunities to avoid or mitigate the salinity problem prior to 1970 so that it would not become such a major problem requiring costly and difficult solutions. The first opportunity relates to the type of drainage works installed in the Wellton-Mohawk Irrigation District. The Dis- trict is situated along the lower reaches of the Gila River, from a point about five miles above its confluence with the Colorado River, and extending some fifty miles upstream. Settlers began irrigated farming in this area in 1859, diverting waters di- rectly from the Gila River. By the 19205, about 11,000 acres were being irrigated. Later, when upstream developments on the Gila River practically caused flows to disappear along the