TRANSBOUNDARY AQUIFER MANAGEMENT ISSUES ON THE U.S.-MEXICO BORDER

Groundwater will become of greater importance on the U.S./Mexico border due to increasing populations, over-appropriation of surface water supplies, and predictions of drier conditions in the coming decades. At this time transboundary aquifer management on the U.S.-Mexico border consists of the unilateral taking of groundwater with little or no consideration of transboundary impacts or sustainability. Several challenges must be met before effective management of transboundary aquifers can take place. Little is known about groundwater availability, dynamics, sustainability, quality, and susceptibility to contamination in much of the U.S./Mexico border region. Environmental and socio-economic components must also be considered for aquifer management to be effective. The various legal and institutional systems now used to manage aquifers on the U.S. side of the border have made it very difficult to develop cooperative management solutions. The greatest challenge in moving the two countries forward on transboundary aquifer management may be getting state and federal water agencies, irrigation districts, and municipalities on the U.S. side of the border to cooperate with each other. In Mexico the system is less complex as all water is considered "national water", providing the federal government with full authority to mange transboundary water resources. This paper will discuss the current needs and challenges associated with the development of a system to manage aquifers that span the U.S./Mexico border.