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<br />1-7 <br /> <br />~, ' <br /> <br />:-", <br /> <br />.,:,; <br /> <br />Trouble had just started. Some regulation was needed to assure <br />New Mexico and Texas of an equitable share of the water of the Rio <br />Grande. New Mexico had water rights dating back to antiquity. <br />Coronado, the first Spanish explorer of the lower and middle Rio <br />"Grande, discovered the Pueblo Indians along the middle Rio Grande in <br />what is now New Mexico. In his journal he recorded seeing the well <br />developed irrigation systems of these Indians. This was in 1540: <br /> <br />,""" <br />0:' <br /> <br />~ <br /> <br />~ <br />, <br />~ <br /> <br />The problem of the inequitable division of Rio Grande water <br /> <br />was recognized and an attempt to resolve it resulted in the Temp- <br /> <br />orary Rio Grande Compact of 1928. The permanent Rio Grande Compact <br /> <br />was the result of one of the most intensive studies ever made of a <br /> <br />river basin up to that time. The permanent compact was signed in <br />1938 and became the 'law' of the river. It is interesting to note <br />this compact gave some recognition to the fragile nature of the <br /> <br />river and specified water quality as well as quantities of water to <br /> <br />be delivered to the lower basin states. The compact was largely ig- <br /> <br /> <br />nored until 1967 when a suit was entered in the Supreme Court of the <br /> <br /> <br />United States by New Mexico and Texas to force Colorado to comply <br /> <br />with its provisions. <br /> <br />Since then Colorado has met the schedule set forth in the com- <br /> <br />pact and reduced its alleged accrued debt from 944,400 to 744,000 <br /> <br />acre feet of water. The decreased amount of water available for <br /> <br />fl...... <br />U \.' <br /> <br />,'"'j, .'~, <br />, u.. <br />