EDINBURG, Texas (Border Report) — The South Texas border town of Edinburg declared that Stage 2 water restrictions soon will begin due to the region’s drought and a lack of water payments from Mexico.
That means that residents will only be able to water laws on certain days and no runoff of water on city streets is allowed.
The new restrictions begin Monday.
The cities of McAllen and Mission, in Hidalgo County, and Brownsville, in Cameron County, also are in Stage 2 water restrictions.
Edinburg is the latest city to implement water restrictions as Hidalgo County in the Rio Grande Valley is currently in a disaster drought declaration.
That’s partly due to a lack of rainfall, and due to Mexico’s failure to pay an expected annual allotment of water to the Rio Grande, under a 1944 international water treaty.
Mexico has until October 2025 to pay the 1.75 million acre feet of water it owes the United States during this current 5-year water cycle, but experts believe it is unlikely since Mexico has paid barely one year’s worth of water owed so far during this cycle.
The lack of water caused a sugar mill in Santa Rosa to close earlier this year, causing 500 people to lose their jobs. It was the only sugar mill in Texas. The other two are in Florida and Louisiana.
Now other cities are considering restrictions on development projects due to a lack of water.
Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.
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