Hey, Check this out! Cross Border Water Wars

 Cross Border Water Wars 

The Boquilla Dam is a dam on the Conchos river in the state of Chihuahua which flows into the Rio Grande River. It serves an important role in the transfer of water between the U.S. and Mexico. Due to climate change Mexico has been experiencing more and more droughts leading to postponements in their water delivery. This threatens a treaty written in 1944 between the U.S. and Mexico which controls the share of water between the Colorado River and Rio Grande River. 

The Mexican government has proposed that they would continue trying to meet the demands of water delivery to the U.S. despite the ongoing droughts and continued water scarcity. Farmers had begun protesting because they were afraid that if their water on their land would be prioritized as an exported commodity instead of being used to support local agriculture, workers would leave and rural communities would be lost. Politicians responded by sending federal forces to occupy the dam in February and keep protests from impeding water deliveries. Even with heightened enforcement, people continued to protest. They burnt government buildings, destroyed cars, and even briefly held a group of politicians hostage. One of the largest protests was a group of hundreds led by farmers who went to the Boquilla Dam and overwhelmed the federal forces which escalated to one of the protesters being shot. 

In Texas, where the water is being sent, farmers and government officials have been demanding that Mexico send their promised amount of water and make up for overdue delivery. They complain that since they aren't maintaining the balance in trade, Mexico has been taking advantage of the treaty's benefits. What they aren't considering is that climate change has drastically affected the environment and a treaty signed decades ago which has forced Mexico to make up 50% of their annual water delivery to the U.S. in a matter of weeks isn't going to be sustainable. 

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