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<br />H <br /> <br />" <br /> <br />'t>/li/7:J <br /> <br />C:) <br />C) <br />~ <br />--.1 <br />00 <br />C') <br /> <br />THE MEXICAN WATER TREATY <br />AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO COLORADO RIVER WATER SUPPLIES <br /> <br />by <br />Myron B. Holburt, Chief Engineer <br />Colorado River Board of California <br /> <br />The meetings in June between Presidents Nixon and Echeverria <br /> <br /> <br />thrust the matter of the salinity of the Colorado River water <br /> <br /> <br />delivered to Mexico pursuant to the Mexican Water Treaty on the <br /> <br /> <br />front pages of our Nation's newpapers. While the press focused <br /> <br /> <br />on salinity problems of the water delivered to Mexico, these <br /> <br /> <br />problems and potential solutions are intimately connected with <br /> <br /> <br />the water supply used within the United States in the seven states <br /> <br /> <br />of the Colorado River Basin; <br /> <br />In order to understand the current situation and future possi- <br /> <br /> <br />bilities in connection with the Treaty, it is necessary to have some <br /> <br /> <br />background information. <br /> <br />1944 Mexican Water Treaty <br /> <br />This Treaty covers the waters of the Colorado, Rio Grande, and <br /> <br /> <br />Tijuana Rivers. It was Mexico that insisted on having one agreement <br /> <br /> <br />covering both the Colorado River and the Rio Grande, rather than' <br /> <br /> <br />having separate treaties. Since the United States is the basic <br /> <br /> <br />source of water delivered to Mexico from the Colorado River, while <br /> <br /> <br />Mexico is the source of a large part of the waters used by the <br /> <br /> <br />United States in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, Mexico felt that <br /> <br />Presented to the California Water Resources Association, August 11, <br />1972, C6tonado, California. <br />