Texas, NM dispute over Rio Grande heads to trial

The yearslong legal battle between New Mexico and Texas over who has taken an unfair share of Rio Grande water is headed to trial after the two states missed their settlement deadline.

A federal judge appointed by the U.S. Supreme Court set a trial for Jan. 17 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, after negotiations continually failed to resolve litigation dating to 2013.

During the summer, Judge Michael Melloy canceled a trial scheduled for Oct. 3 to give the parties more time to settle their water-sharing dispute, which remains tense as a megadrought and changing climate reduce the amount of Rio Grande water flowing to both states.

Farmers, Native American tribes and the cities of Santa Fe, Albuquerque and El Paso are among the users of the river water.

Melloy imposed a Sept. 27 deadline for Texas and New Mexico to reach a settlement or go to trial.

New Mexico officials indicated they are still optimistic they can settle the case, even as they dig in and insist they are in the right.

A spokeswoman for the New Mexico Attorney General's Office wrote in an email the state went into the original trial in October 2021 with strong evidence that protects its farmers.

"Yet we remain committed to exploring settlement resolution before the trial resumes in January," spokeswoman Jerri Mares wrote.

If the parties reach an agreement, the Supreme Court must sign off on it.

The case involves complex legal issues surrounding the 1938 Rio Grande Compact, which governs water deliveries to New Mexico, Texas and Colorado. And it's part of a tangled web of lawsuits and countersuits.

But it's simple at its heart.

Texas has accused New Mexico of letting farmers pump groundwater for irrigation near the Rio Grande south of Elephant Butte, reducing the river flow and denying Texas its full share of water under the compact.

New Mexico contends Texas has always received its full allotment, despite farmers drilling wells near the river.

New Mexico further argues it has been deprived of its fair share of water.

In 2018, the Supreme Court denied New Mexico's legal motions to dismiss Texas' complaint.

If New Mexico loses the fight, it might have to shell out as much as $2 billion in damages and legal fees.

Fearing such a bleak outcome, state lawmakers have encouraged negotiations between the two states.

The legal tussle has further complicated an already fraught relationship between Texas and New Mexico over Rio Grande water.

New Mexico owes Texas about 127,000 acre-feet, or roughly 41 billion gallons, under the Rio Grande Compact.

The hefty debt has prompted Texas to refuse to allow natural or "native" Rio Grande basin flows to be held in Abiquiú Lake while renovations of El Vado Dam are underway, making the reservoir unavailable for storing water.

Both lakes lie along the Rio Chama, which flows into the Rio Grande north of Española. The Chama also carries water diverted from the San Juan River in the Colorado River Basin through the federal San Juan-Chama Project, a series a dams and tunnels.

All members of the Rio Grande Compact commission must agree to a plan to store native water in Abiquiú Lake, which otherwise is limited to holding San Juan-Chama water.

Texas has balked, saying it wants New Mexico to send as much water downstream as possible to pay its debt.

The lack of storage makes it more difficult for water managers to supply irrigators amid the long drought that gets only sporadic relief, such as this year's monsoon.