About the Rio Grande Watermaster Program
In the Rio Grande basin, above Amistad, water rights are managed
as a “first in time, first in right” stream as they are
in other parts of Texas. Water rights in the Middle and Lower Rio
Grande are served by the Falcon-Amistad system. Water below Amistad
is allocated on an account basis, much like having a bank account
with a constantly changing balance. Priority is given to all
municipal accounts so, at the beginning of each year, each
municipal account’s storage balance is set to the authorized
water-right amount. The municipal priority is guaranteed by the
monthly reestablishment of a municipal reserve in the system of
225,000 acre-feet. That is equivalent to one year’s average
diversions for all municipal demands below Amistad for Texas
users.
Irrigation accounts, on the other hand, are not reset each year
and must rely on balances carried forward. Each month, a
determination is made as to how much unallocated water assigned to
the United States is within the Falcon-Amistad system. If surplus
water is identified, it is allocated to irrigation accounts on a
monthly basis. When water is used, it is subtracted from the
respective account by type of use from the account’s usable
balance. This system of accounting for water usage was put in place
after an international treaty with Mexico was established and in
accordance with a district court ruling of 1969.
Rio Grande Watermaster’s Office
Rio Grande Watermaster
1804 West Jefferson Avenue
Harlingen, TX 78550-5247
Voice: 956/425-6010
Fax: 956/412-5059
E-mail: R15RO@tceq.state.tx.us
Jurisdiction
| River Basin |
Counties |
| Rio Grande |
Brewster, Cameron, Dimmit, Hidalgo, Hudspeth, Jeff Davis, Jim
Hogg, Kinney, Maverick, Presidio, Starr, Terrell, Val Verde, Webb,
Willacy, Zapata |
Offers to Sell or Contract Water in the Rio Grande
In accordance with Section 49.504(2)(A) of Senate Bill 3, as
passed by the 80th Texas Legislature, 2007, Regular Session, the
following advertisement(s) to sell or contract for the use of water
is posted for a period of 90 days:
- The Harlingen Irrigation District has 2000 acre feet of
Municipal use water available for sale/contract. Please
contact Wayne Halbert, General Manager at (956) 423-7015 or (956)
873-2816, for more information.
This posting will close on March 31, 2008.
- The Cameron County Irrigation District has
700 acre feet of Municipal use
water available for sale/contract. Please contact Sonia kaniger,
General Manager at (956) 399-2484, for more information.
This posting will close on April 7, 2008.
