The Clock Is Ticking for New Mexico to Cut Rio Grande Water Use

The Clock Is Ticking for New Mexico to Cut Rio Grande Water Use

Reporting supported by the Water Desk at the University of Colorado Boulder. HATCH, N.M.—After 13 years, Texas and New Mexico have finally reached a settlement in a Supreme Court case over Rio Grande water management. Now comes the hard part. Texas sued New Mexico in 2013, arguing that its upstream neighbor was hogging water on […]

What the Supreme Court Rio Grande Settlement Means for New Mexico and Texas

After 13 years of legal disputes, Texas and New Mexico have settled their fight over the Rio Grande’s water in the U.S. Supreme Court. Although the lawsuit is over, the settlement begins a long, complicated process of managing the West’s shrinking water supply. Here’s what the agreement means, how much it could cost, and the challenges that lie ahead. What was the dispute about? In 2013, Texas sued New Mexico, claiming that New Mexico farmers we…