It also represents a first step toward large-scale restoration of the Colorado River Delta, including a precedent-setting and long-sought agreement to provide water to support restoration of this important environmental resource.
The Colorado River Delta was once a lush region of 3,000 square miles teeming with plant, bird and marine life. However, more than 100 dams on the river and its tributaries divert water to cities and farms, reducing the delta to a tiny remnant of its former self.
The Sonoran Institute and our partners see a day when the Colorado River once again flows into the Gulf of California and the delta is brought back to life.
This agreement is a welcome advance in re-establishing good relations between Arizona and Mexico.
Our relationship with Mexico is substantial and vitally important. In addition to a border, we share a common history, landscape, and rich social and economic ties - including our dependence on critical natural resources like the Colorado River.
We have a powerful mutual interest in ensuring that we manage those resources cooperatively and effectively.
Arizona and the
Central Arizona Project were closely involved in the negotiation of this agreement, and the CAP is providing funds that will go toward lining irrigation canals and other efficiency improvements in Mexico.
In return, the CAP will receive a portion of the water that will be saved by these improvements, at a lower cost to CAP users than water purchased in the U.S.
Three environmental groups operating in Arizona - the Sonoran Institute, Nature Conservancy and Environmental Defense Fund - were also instrumental in forging this agreement and will play a key role in its successful implementation. To that end, they have agreed to meet specific water-delivery and restoration goals over the next five years. This takes money.
On Sept. 7, these groups and others will launch the
Raise the River campaign, which has set a goal of raising more than $10 million to acquire water and to restore key segments of the Colorado River Delta.
Robert Redford, noted actor and conservationist, and dignitaries from both countries will attend the kickoff event in Phoenix.
Meeting the fundraising and restoration goals are critical to the success of this historic agreement.
Based on the lessons learned over the next five years, the U.S. and Mexico may negotiate a new, longer-term agreement to extend the benefits of the current pact.
This agreement could, in turn, be an important factor in determining how Arizona, our sister states in the basin and the federal government will be able to manage the resources of the Colorado River to meet the challenges of drought and growing water demand while also restoring the delta.
Click here for more information about the kickoff event in Phoenix. I hope you can join us.