2024 in Review: Galeazzi discusses water shortages

MCALLEN, Texas – Dante Galeazzi, president and CEO of the Texas International Produce Association (TIPA), worries that some of the smaller RGV cities will have their water supply rationed just like it was in Monterrey and Reynosa.

And it will be for the same reason – because water that should be coming to South Texas and Tamaulipas under a 1944 international water sharing treaty is being held back by the state of Chihuahua.

Galeazzi spoke in depth about the Valley’s current water supply crisis when he appeared on panel at UT-Rio Grande Valley’s Vistas from Texas seminar in October. It was held at UTRGV’s corporate headquarters inside the Rio Bank HQ in McAllen.

“The water shortage is not only impacting the Rio Grande Valley, but also dramatically impacting our friends in Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon,” Galeazzi. “Look at what happened in Monterrey, Mexico, and Reynosa, Mexico, just these last two summers. They have been on severe water restrictions. It has been so bad that Reynosa this year shut off water to 260 different communities, and they basically put them on water schedules. I think was every third day that you got water, or every second day, something like that.”

Galeazzi continued: “And so what was happening was, people had scheduled days they could get water. Both in Monterrey and Reynosa. You had to be ready on time, on your day, with buckets, or both days, to fill your bathtub and fill up enough water for three days for your family. That’s what could happen here in the U.S. That’s what’s going to happen in those little cities if we don’t invest in what’s happening in water.”

Galeazzi said there are a lot of water projects in the works in the Valley but many of them are focused on conservation.

“We need to be looking at new water development. This is important. A lot of our smaller communities in our irrigation districts, specifically small towns, etc., are unable to access federal monies for water projects because it requires a 50 percent cost share,” Galeazzi said. “Our communities are not holding on to stockpiles of millions of dollars for projects.”

So, what’s needed?

“We need reservoirs,” Galeazzi said. “We’ve got to hold the water here in the U.S. We need to improve our irrigation infrastructure systems. Most of our canals are dirt trenches. That is terrible evaporation loss. Just to move water from one district to the other, you’re going to lose 50 percent of the water in the transfer, and that’s if the day is less than 90 degrees. Guess how many days we have under 90 degrees here in South Texas? Not a whole lot, especially not the summer.”

What the Valley could do with, Galeazzi said, is for the federal government to waive the 50-50 cost share requirement, to “help us get projects going and off the ground.”

Galeazzi said the Valley also suffers from “disjointed cooperation.” He explained: “You’ve got 27 irrigation districts across four counties, about 50 different cities, 1.3 million residents, and all of them are using a different voice. We’re finally getting together on a singular voice. But guys, we’re a little behind schedule.”

1944 Water Treaty

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Galeazzi explained in detail how a 1944 water sharing treaty between the United States and Mexico is supposed to work and how it actually works. He said that the Rio Conchos, which is mostly in Chihuahua and a little bit in Coahuila, is responsible for 30 percent of the water that makes up the Rio Grande River.

“Why is this important? The Rio Grande Valley is the last users of the water on the U.S. side of the Rio Grande River. We depend on 90 percent of our fresh water coming from the Rio Grande River. It is the lifeblood for the Valley. Without that river’s water, we have no fresh water to sustain agriculture, populations, or work, like oil and gas.”

The other 60 percent of the water in the Rio Grande River comes from Colorado and New Mexico, Galeazzi pointed out.

“That’s an issue in and of itself. I don’t have time for that today, so we’re just going to really focus on this 30 percent. So, the treaty basically says, over a five-year period, Mexico needs to deliver so much water, 1.75-million-acre feet. To give you an idea, an acre foot of water is a football field covered to a depth of one foot of water.”

Galeazzi said Mexico has only hit the 1.75-million-acre feet target twice in the last 32 years. One year they achieved it because of a monsoon, he said, and the other time because of extreme political pressure.

“Why does this keep happening, you ask? Well, back in 1944 whoever was responsible for writing the portion of the treaty about Mexico’s delivery (of water) to the U.S. really did a number and did not pay attention,” Galeazzi said. “And they wrote this really cute line here that says, ‘provided as an average amount in cycles of five consecutive years, that they have to make this delivery.’ Notice that it doesn’t say they need to make that delivery every year.”

A member of the audience interrupted Galeazzi to say Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon have water shortages, also. Galeazzi acknowledged this.

“It mirrors what’s happening in South Texas. Why? Because we are both the last users of water. The issue is happening upstream. We’re going to talk about that,” Galeazzi responded.

Agriculture in Chihuahua

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“Anyway, because of this language (in the 1944 treaty), what happens is that in the early 1990s specifically Chihuahua, Mexico, figured out, hey, wait a minute, I don’t have to make annual payments, I only need to pay (water from the Conchos River Basin) once every five years, because that’s what the treaty says. Once they figured that out, they started intentionally withholding the deliveries, and the U.S. State Department has said, guys (Valley agriculture producers and irrigators), we can’t help you because of this line (in the treaty) right here.”

Galeazzi said there is “another wonderful little addition” to the 1944 treaty. He was being sarcastic.

“Basically, this says, in the case of extreme drought in the country of Mexico, you get another five years to make it up. So, essentially, you have ten years to make up these deliveries. Guess what happens every ten years? Any guesses? A hurricane. A hurricane happens every ten years. Chihuahua, Mexico figured out, if we wait long enough, and we exercise both clauses, Mother Nature will take care of it, and we need not deliver a single drop.”

Over the past year the water levels in Amistad and Falcon dams, which store water for the Valley and Tamaulipas, reached an all-time low. “After 32 years, the problem has reached a pinnacle,” Galeazzi said.

Because of the drought and because Mexico has not honored the 1944 treaty, Galeazzi said, farmers in the Valley have just enough water to start a growing season, but not enough water to finish it.

“Most of our farmers are not going to get water,” Galeazzi predicted. He pointed to a study that shows the impact of agriculture losses has reached $1 billion in Texas. Most of that, he said, is in the Valley.

“We’ve already felt the impact of the sugar mill. The last sugar mill in Texas, responsible for more than 45,000 acres of production, closed in February. Five hundred permanent jobs, more than 500 farmers growing the crop, not to mention all the allied industries that were responsible for it, out of business. Gone.”

So, where is the water going, Galeazzi asked. He pointed to a map showing the largest dam in Chihuahua, Mexico.

“March 15, 2023, these guys were almost at maximum capacity. All this bright green is agriculture. How many of you are familiar with the topography or geography of Chihuahua Mexico? Specifically, the area near New Mexico? Yeah, couple of people. Most of you not. It’s a pretty arid area. Chihuahua is named after a desert, the Chihuahua desert, right? So, it’s very arid.”

Galeazzi pointed to a map in his power point presentation.

“All of that green is agricultural production. All that water that’s being held back is being used to grow various crops and increase agricultural production in Chihuahua, Mexico.”

Galeazzi then pointed to NASA satellite imagery to show the expansion of Chihuahua’s agricultural industry.

“Here’s where the big issue comes in. Check out some of these growth numbers. Pistachios. You went from 20 acres in 2000, 22 years later, you have 283 acres. Check out pecans; (20 years ago) 65,000 acres, (now) 176,000 (acres).”

“Why is this so big?” Galeazzi asked, rhetorically.

“You see these crops (in Chihuahua). Guess who they’re competing against? The United States of America. Guess who are they specifically competing against? The Rio Grande Valley. They are using water that should be coming here to the Valley, should be going to the farmers in Tamaulipas, and instead it’s staying in Chihuahua, and they are using that to then grow products and sell it back into the United States.”

Galeazzi said New Mexico used to be the largest pecan producing state in all North America.

“They sold premium level pecans to Asia, primarily China. They no longer have that business. El Paso, Texas, no longer has that business,” Galeazzi said. “Guess who has that business? Our friends in Chihuahua.”

Editor’s Note: Here, below, is an audio recording of Dante Galeazzi’s presentation at UTRGV’s Vistas from Texas seminar. He is introduced by Salvador Contreras, professor of economics at the Robert C. Vackar College of Business & Entrepreneurship and associate dean of the Graduate College at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. 

Editor’s Note: Rio Grande Guardian reporter Patricia Martinez contributed to this story from McAllen.

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