Mexico and US reach agreement to address Mexico’s habit of falling behind in water-sharing payments

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico and the United States have reached an agreement they hope will address Mexico’s habit of falling behind in water-sharing payments in the Rio Bravo watershed, also known as the Rio Grande. The agreement announced Saturday “provides Mexico with tools and flexibility to deliver water earlier in the five-year cycle under the 1944 U.S.-Mexico water treaty.” That’s according to the bilateral International Border and Water Commission. The treaty moves in five-year cycles, and allows Mexico to run a water debt in the first four years, if it can make it up in the fifth. That has led Mexico to fall behind, hoping for a hurricane.