WSP03596

• File Number: 8275.100
• Description: Legislation and Litigation -- SALINITY -- Federal Legislation
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Water Division: 5
• Date: 1/1/3000
• Title: Statement of the Committee of Fourteen on Behalf of the Governors of the Seven Colorado River Basin States on HR 12165 Before the House of Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs - date unknown
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

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bypass all other Uellton-:.lohawk drainage 'I<lters without receiving
substitution ,.raters in lieu thereof. This in effect conti;,ues
the arrangenents of l-linute 241 on an interim basis until "the
provisions of Point l(a) become effective..."
Point 3 of the ~linute requires the United States at its

O>fIl e::<pense to extend the lined b,'pass channel to the international
boundary, and Point 4 requires that.the bypass channel be
extended frori the international boundary to the Gulf of Cali-
fornia on Hexican territory, although at United States expense.
Point 5 provides that until a comprehensive agreement. on
groundwater in the border area is concluded by the parties,
each country must . limit groundwater p1lr.lping '-lithin a five-mile
zone along the international boundary to an arolual total of
160,000 acre-feet. This groundwater agreement is a respone
to the situation created by /.lexicols recent unilateral decision
to drill and begin p~~ping a well field immediately south of the
international boundary. We understand that d~ing the inter-
national negotiations leading up to J.linute 2lf2, tho United
States negotiators objected to this ex parte change in the
status quo in respect to groundwater: developr.wnts in the border
area because .it is clear as a matter of hydrology that the new
Hexican groundlTater developments "ill steepen the gradient of
ground\.rater 'flolT from the United States into :re:cico 1.L'1less a
compensating United States groundwater developnent is initiated.
Studies made for the International Water and Boundary r.owoission

indicate that it will be necessary to punp in the United States
approximately l~O,OOO acre-feet per year over ~~d above current
punping >lithin five miles of the Arizona-Sonora boundary to

protect against the loss of swface and gronnd1.raters to Hc:~ico
as a result of pumpine by the He}:ican goverl1Ii1ent in the vicini t~l
of San Luis. These same studie~ also reve~l that as a result of

the combined p~",ping of the tHO Govern':1Gnts the San Luis drain

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