Experts warn Rio Grande could run dry by 2050 without investment

MCALLEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The future of the Rio Grande was the focus of a water symposium held Thursday in McAllen, where leaders from both sides of the border met to discuss how to save the river that connects two nations.

Experts say that by 2050, the river could face severe shortages if no action is taken. The call for binational cooperation and investment was clear.

The Rio Grande serves as the main water source for more than six million people across Texas and northern Mexico. However, experts say climate stress, aging infrastructure, and population growth are pushing the basin to its limits.

Martin Castro, Watershed Science Director at the Rio Grande International Study Center, said a lack of investment is the greatest threat.

“You have to bring investment in the realms of conservation and restoration,” Castro said. “There’s a lot of habitat riparian corridors that have been fragmented.”

Castro pointed out that while the Colorado River Basin received billions of dollars in federal support, the Rio Grande received none.

Delta Lake Irrigation District General Manager Troy Allen said local farmers are struggling to keep up.

“Most of my farmers are having to farm a portion of the land they have, not all of it,” Allen said. “Or just do preventative planting and not farm some properties at all.”

Allen said repairing infrastructure built more than a century ago is crucial, but funding remains limited.

“You can put a pipe in 1980, and those pipes are leaking underground now,” Allen said. “We’re just trying to keep up and not be a huge burden.”

Across the border, Tamaulipas officials said they are also facing similar challenges.

“For every cubic meter that a Texas farmer is short, we in Tamaulipas are short two, because that’s how it’s established in the treaty,” said Raul Quiroga Alvarez, Secretary of Hydraulic Resources for Social Development in Tamaulipas. “Sending water through the San Juan canal would create an additional deficit that would affect major users like farmers in the district and the city of Monterrey.”

Private companies like Aqualia USA also attended the event, showcasing technology that could help detect leaks and improve water efficiency.

“It can help define where those breakings are and how to limit the water that is leaving through pressure-management control,” said Eva Arnaiz Garcia, Aqualia USA Vice President.

Aqualia officials said they do not yet have cost estimates for their projects as they are new to the Rio Grande Valley and are introducing themselves to cities and other entities. Meanwhile, experts like Castro believe at least $1 billion is needed to begin real rehabilitation efforts along the Rio Grande.