The Colorado River near Page, in Arizona. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
At the end of the November, The U.S. and Mexico signed a monumental agreement to overhaul how the countries share the water from the Colorado River. From the New York Times:
Under the agreement, the two countries will share in both surpluses and water shortages. During drought years in the United States, less water will be sent to Mexico. In exchange, during years of plenty, Mexico will be allowed to store some of its water north of its border.
In addition, the countries will allocate some water to restore the ecological health of the river’s delta in Mexico.
Last week on Rocky Mountain PBS, Colorado Supreme Court Justice Gregory Hobbs, Colorado Water Conservation Board Director Jennifer Gimbel, and State Engineer Dick Wolfe discussed water law, the state of the Colorado River and the new agreement. Watch the full video online.
Want to learn more about the Colorado River from its headwaters in Colorado to the delta in Mexico? Colorado photographer and documentary maker Pete McBride’s award-winning film “Chasing Water” has been released on DVD. The film traces McBride’s journey down the Colorado River. At the same time, his book, a Water 2012 Book Club selection, “The Colorado River Flowing Through Conflict” has been reprinted. Read our blog post about the Book, published early in the year, or this interview with McBride. You can also follow the journeys of Colorado College graduates Will Stoffer-Norris and Zak Podmore as they did traveled down the Colorado for the past two summers, working to create a geographical database through the State of the Rockies Project.
Related articles
- U.S. and Mexico Sign Deal on Managing Colorado River (nytimes.com)
- ‘Monumental’ U.S.-Mexico pact divvies up Colorado River water (bizjournals.com)
- US, Mexico sign rules on sharing Colorado River (cnsnews.com)
- Peter H. Gleick: An Historic Step Toward Saving the Colorado River and Delta (huffingtonpost.com)
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