BPUB hosts meeting to discuss drought concerns

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Brownsville Public Utilities Board hosted a roundtable meeting to address ongoing drought issues.

Recently the Rio Grande Valley has seen historically low water levels from its supply in the Amistad and Falcon Reservoir. Brownsville enacted water restrictions for a stage two drought last October when the Amistad water supply dropped to 19%. Now, the city is discussing the potential of enacting stage three water restrictions if the Amistad supply further decreases.

Brownsville Mayor John F. Cowen said the transition is possible for the fall of 2024 and without help from the state or federal level, the city won't be able to continue its economic growth.

“We don’t want to hamper growth, we do need good paying jobs and we are being very successful currently in the projects that we’ve been having in Brownsville and at the port of Brownsville and at SpaceX," Cowen said. "I think in order to continue that growth and development we’re going to need that water infrastructure."

Janie Lopez, the state representative for District 37, said the Valley needs federal support to receive water from Mexico for the 1944 treaty that governs water distribution in the Rio Grande River.

“At the state level, we need to be looking at alternative sources. We can’t be relying on luck if it rains," Lopez said. "We also need the federal level to put pressure on Mexico to give us the water that belongs to us."

Currently, Mexico has only provided a one-year supply of water out of the four years that the treaty has been enacted.

Without an adequate supply from the Amistad Reservoir, BPUB is looking at other sources of water including groundwater and dredging from local resacas.

As Brownsville continues to enforce stage two drought water restrictions, residents have limitations on the number of times they can water their lawns, wash their cars and flush their gutters. There are penalties if residents don't comply with restrictions.