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{~i;;* , ' tv tv W W Western States Water Council Meeting Boise, Idaho April 12, 1974 And, finally, the Administration's bill fails to protect the Basin States against water losses to Mexico resulting from pumping by the Mexican government immediately across the border near San Luis, This is an interesting problem. With your indulgence I'll go into more detail than I have on the other concerns, Studies made for the International Water and Boundary Commission indicate that it will be necessary to pump in the United States approximately 140,000 acre-feet per year over and above current pumping within five miles of the Arizona- Sonora boundary to protect against the loss of surface and ground- . waters to Mexico as a result of pumping by the Mexican govern- ment in the vicinity of San Luis. These same studies also reveal that as a result of the combined pumping of the two governments the San Luis drain will dry up and the waters pumped by the United States will be required to maintain deliveries of 140,000 acre-feet per year to Mexido via the drain as has been our practice over the years and as is called for in Minute 242. In 1964 the Department of the Interiol~, in promulgating the Southwest Water Plan, proposed the recovery of 220,000 acre-feet per year of, groundwaters in the Yuma area. The Mexican' government protested vigorously. State Department opposition developed quickly and Interior abandoned the plan except for the development of the wells on the Yuma Mesa required to provide 60,000 acre-feet of substi tution waters to assist in meeting the requirements of Minute 241 . Apparently, the seed of the idea of massive groundwater pumping had been planted in Mexico. Without the knowledge of the states, the Mexican govel^nment undertook the development of the San Luis well field with a capacity of 160, 000 acre-feet per year in the immediate vicinity of the Arizona-Sonol~a border, a location which affords it maximum impact on United States waters. The Committee of Fourteen urged the negotiating team to make I^csolution of the problem posed by Mexico's pumping a condition of U ,S. agreement to a solution of the salinity problem, Two alternatives were available that would have left interests of the Basin States as they were prior to the initiation of pumping in the San Luis well field and would have been without cost to the states. First and most logical would have been insistence by the U.S. that Mexico accept as a charge against its Treaty allotment all waters drawn from the U. S, by the San Luis well field. Failing this, the Mexican government would have the option of limiting the amount of water pumped annually at the San Luis well field to an amount which the two governments would agree would have a negligible impact on U.S. Water supplies. l '1 A-'11' f' ~ -. ,,'