{"id":342525,"date":"2025-12-11T06:28:15","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T06:28:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/342525\/"},"modified":"2025-12-11T06:28:15","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T06:28:15","slug":"binational-effort-is-fixing-rio-grande-sewage-problem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/342525\/","title":{"rendered":"Binational effort is fixing Rio Grande sewage problem"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

Audio recording is automated for accessibility. Humans wrote and edited the story. See our AI policy<\/a>, and give us feedback<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This story is published in partnership with Inside Climate News<\/a>, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for the ICN newsletter here.<\/a><\/p>\n

NUEVO LAREDO, Mexico \u2014 Silvia Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo Boone leaned over a stream of water rushing through a concrete chute at the city\u2019s wastewater treatment plant. <\/p>\n

\u201cSmell it!\u201d she said, beaming.<\/p>\n

Odorless, treated wastewater flowed into the Coyote Arroyo, or creek, then the Rio Grande. Mere months earlier, more than 12 million gallons of raw sewage were leaking every day into the river and groundwater in Nuevo Laredo. After repairs to the treatment plant, to Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo\u2019s delight, the flow of untreated wastewater has been significantly reduced. <\/p>\n

\u201cBeing on the border, we really live our lives on both sides of the river,\u201d Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo said, looking out at the treatment plant. \u201cWe all have a stake in taking care of the river.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Silvia Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo Boone and Juan Carlos P\u00e9rez of COMAPA at Nuevo Laredo\u2019s wastewater treatment plant in October 2025. Martha Pskowski\/Inside Climate News<\/p>\n

When Carmen Lilia Canturosas was elected mayor of Nuevo Laredo in 2021, deferred maintenance had debilitated the plant. To make matters worse, broken sewer lines were leaking wastewater onto city streets. Canturosas, re-elected in 2024, threw her support behind overhauling Nuevo Laredo\u2019s wastewater and sewer system. <\/p>\n

Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo, an architect by training, was appointed general manager of the Potable Water and Sanitation Commission (Comisi\u00f3n de Agua Potable y Alcantarillado), known by its Spanish acronym COMAPA. In 2023, COMAPA broke ground on an $80 million project, backed by U.S. and Mexican institutions, to repair the failing wastewater treatment plant and damaged sewer lines. The North American Development Bank (NADBank) issued the largest grant for wastewater improvements in its 30-year history. <\/p>\n

Shared waterways like the Rio Grande have been sites of cooperation between the two countries, but also points of contention. Nuevo Laredo\u2019s wastewater overhaul is the latest bet that the U.S. and Mexico can work together to improve water quality and the environment. <\/p>\n

But the project is reaching fruition as tensions mount between the U.S. and Mexico under the second Trump presidency. Mexico once again has fallen short on its treaty commitment to share Rio Grande water with the United States. Meanwhile, Trump\u2019s tariff demands have cast a shadow over trade hubs like Laredo-Nuevo Laredo. <\/p>\n

Far from the policy disputes of Washington, D.C., officials like Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo are still counting on binational collaboration to yield tangible benefits for local residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cRehabilitating the Rio Bravo doesn\u2019t just mean improving local environmental conditions,\u201d she wrote in a statement to Inside Climate News, using the Mexican name for the river. \u201cIt also represents an opportunity to move toward shared water security between Mexico and the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n

Monitoring water quality <\/p>\n

The day before Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo toured the plant, Martin Castro and Tom Vaughan were on the other side of the border, knee deep in the Rio Grande. Four Border Patrol officers peered out from an outcropping above the river and asked what they were doing.<\/p>\n

Castro, watershed science director at the Rio Grande International Study Center, and Vaughan, a center co-founder and emeritus biology professor at Texas A&M International University in Laredo, calmly explained that they were taking water quality samples. A few minutes later, the officers left.<\/p>\n

The pair were collecting samples to contribute to an extensive database on the river\u2019s water quality, as they do every month.<\/p>\n

\"\"Dr. Tom Vaughan, co-founder of the Rio Grande International Study Center, and Martin Castro, the group\u2019s watershed science director, on the banks of Zacate Creek in Laredo on Oct. 28, 2025. Brenda Baz\u00e1n for Inside Climate News<\/p>\n

On that late October day, Border Patrol and National Guard troops far outnumbered fishermen and other recreational visitors to the Rio Grande. It\u2019s not only the law enforcement presence that makes environmental protection on the Rio Grande unique. <\/p>\n

As an international river, the Rio Grande was initially excluded from the Texas Clean Rivers Program. The collaborative effort monitors and protects the state\u2019s water resources. Vaughan was among those who advocated in the 1990s for the Rio Grande to be included.<\/p>\n

The International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), a federal agency that enforces the border and water agreements, eventually took over water quality monitoring on the river. IBWC data from the Rio Grande now feeds into the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality\u2019s Clean Rivers Program.<\/p>\n

For more than 1,200 miles, the Rio Grande snakes between Texas and Mexico, crossing remote deserts and urban areas before reaching its delta at the Gulf of Mexico. IBWC partners with organizations like the Rio Grande study center to collect water samples at 119 stations. Monitoring at eight stations in El Paso was suspended in 2023 because of border security installations. IBWC spokesperson Frank Fisher said sampling has been re-established at all but three sites.<\/p>\n

Castro and Vaughan collected samples to send to a certified laboratory. They record other measurements themselves, such as turbidity using a Secchi disk.<\/p>\n

\u201cUpriver, I would swim in it,\u201d Vaughan said, referring to the Rio Grande upstream of the bend in the river that wraps around Laredo. \u201cIf I was really thirsty, I might drink it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Martin Castro (left) and Tom Vaughan collect water samples in the Rio Grande on Oct. 28. Brenda Baz\u00e1n for Inside Climate News<\/p>\n

But he explained that sewage downstream of the city makes the water unsafe for swimming or other contact recreation. This part of the Rio Grande below the Amistad Reservoir, known as segment 2304, exceeds Texas standards for bacteria.<\/p>\n

In this stretch of the river, the highest readings for E. coli, the indicator for bacteria, are downstream of Laredo and the wastewater discharges from Nuevo Laredo, according to IBWC\u2019s 2024 Rio Grande summary report<\/a>. At the Pipeline Crossing and El Cenizo sites, E. coli readings were 240,000 parts per 100 milliliters. That is nearly 2,000 times the state\u2019s water quality standard of 126 parts. <\/p>\n

The IBWC report warns of \u201cserious health risks\u201d and that the water is unsuitable for recreational activities or consumption. The report attributes the high bacteria levels to wastewater infrastructure allowing sewage to enter the river.<\/p>\n

IBWC\u2019s Fisher said bacteria levels are elevated in other parts of the river including in the urban areas of El Paso\/Ciudad Ju\u00e1rez, Del Rio\/Ciudad Acu\u00f1a, Eagle Pass\/Piedras Negras, and in Hidalgo County.<\/p>\n

\u201cTCEQ is committed to advancing collaboration among federal, state, and binational partners to improve water quality and resilience in the border region,\u201d said Texas Commission on Environmental Quality spokesperson Victoria Cann. <\/p>\n

Cann referenced the Lower Rio Grande Water Quality Initiative as one example of the agency\u2019s efforts to improve water management. The initiative aims to \u201crestore, protect and improve\u201d water quality on the Lower Rio Grande<\/a> downstream of Falcon Reservoir. The group recently completed an 18-month binational salinity study, according to Cann. <\/p>\n

Cleaning up the Rio Grande <\/p>\n

It\u2019s one thing to collect data on the river\u2019s water quality. It\u2019s another to act on that data. For decades, the U.S. and Mexico have debated how to improve the environment and sanitation along their nearly 2,000-mile border.<\/p>\n

The 1944 water treaty between the two countries entrusted border sanitation issues to the IBWC. As new problems cropped up \u2014 like sewage flowing downhill from Mexico into the U.S. \u2014 new agreements, known as minutes, were added to the treaty. In 1989, the U.S. and Mexico partnered to build a wastewater treatment plant in Nuevo Laredo.<\/p>\n

After the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was adopted in 1994, Nuevo Laredo and other border cities grew rapidly. Nuevo Laredo\u2019s wastewater treatment plant opened in 1996. Binational wastewater treatment plants were also built in Tijuana, Baja California and Nogales, Arizona. <\/p>\n

In a side agreement to NAFTA, the two countries created the NADBank, a binational development bank to fund infrastructure on the border. <\/p>\n

Nuevo Laredo\u2019s population has almost doubled since 1994, to nearly half a million people. Laredo, with about 260,000 people, is now the busiest land port for international trade in the United States. <\/p>\n

\"\"The Rio Grande flows though Laredo. Brenda Baz\u00e1n for Inside Climate News<\/p>\n

But ongoing maintenance of wastewater infrastructure became a sticking point. By the time NAFTA was renegotiated in 2020 \u2014 and renamed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement \u2014 border wastewater treatment plants were in urgent need of repairs. Sewage flowing from Tijuana into Southern California became an international dispute.<\/p>\n

Colorado State University emeritus political scientist Stephen Mumme, an expert on U.S.-Mexico relations, partially attributes maintenance problems to the \u201cconstant churn\u201d in Mexican politics, in which local administrations change every three years.<\/p>\n

Mexican cities also struggle to finance long-term infrastructure projects and collect monthly bills from ratepayers. Sanitation competes with other urgent public works in border cities buckling under rapid growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe capacity to engage in the type of financing and planning that is often taken for granted in American cities is not yet fully realized in Mexican cities, even in border cities,\u201d Mumme said.<\/p>\n

Jes\u00fas Frausto Ortega, coordinator of the water management graduate program at Colegio de la Frontera Norte in Monterrey, Mexico, said that previous efforts to stop the flow of sewage in Nuevo Laredo were like paving over a pothole. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou could fix one part, but there was no holistic solution,\u201d said Frausto Ortega, who previously worked in Nuevo Laredo.<\/p>\n

He said Mexican cities often lack political will to invest in sanitation infrastructure.<\/p>\n

\u201cTraditionally, officials don\u2019t invest in projects that are underground,\u201d he said. \u201c[That\u2019s because] the public doesn\u2019t see the project and we don\u2019t have reliable accountability mechanisms.\u201d<\/p>\n

COMAPA\u2019s Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo said she heard this sentiment from other public officials. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhy would you want to invest in sewer lines?\u201d she remembers them asking. \u201cThat\u2019s like burying money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Binational investment <\/p>\n

Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo and Canturosas, the mayor, persisted. They found support among U.S. officials, including then U.S. Ambassador Ken Salazar and then IBWC Commissioner Maria-Elena Giner. NADBank provided an initial $650,000 grant<\/a> to develop plans for the wastewater treatment plant and collapsed sewer lines.<\/p>\n

Support started to pour in. NADBank committed $22 million from the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s Border Environment Infrastructure Fund. Mexican agencies, including COMAPA, committed another $53 million. The IBWC pitched in $2 million, and a commercial loan of $6 million rounded out the budget. <\/p>\n

IBWC\u2019s Fisher said the agency\u2019s contribution came \u201cas part of a long-standing practice to share the cost of extraordinary maintenance.\u201d He said the funds were used to purchase six aerators needed for the biological process at the plant.<\/p>\n

NADBank Managing Director John Beckham said that the significant commitments from both countries set the effort apart.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are unique features of this project that are replicable,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re proud of it. We think it\u2019s something that can help us in other parts of the river.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Las Palmas Trail next to the Rio Grande in Laredo. Brenda Baz\u00e1n for Inside Climate News<\/p>\n

Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo estimated in late October that the wastewater treatment plant\u2019s rehabilitation was 80% complete. She said that sewage was still being discharged at 10 locations in the city, down from 27.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re investing in a public good,\u201d she said. \u201cThese are projects that you don\u2019t see, but you feel the difference in the city.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo acknowledged that COMAPA must prevent deferred maintenance from once again hobbling the plant. She said that going forward, 4% of funds from water bills will be designated for maintenance. <\/p>\n

Beckham added: \u201c[We have to] ensure that these plants can be maintained over time \u2026 To avoid cycles of every 25 years where we have to lay out $80 million.\u201d<\/p>\n

Martin Castro of the Rio Grande International Study Center said the upgrades are a \u201cmeaningful milestone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey underscore how urgently the river needs sustained infrastructure investment,\u201d he said. \u201cContinued investment and binational cooperation are essential to protect water quality for both communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Changing political, environmental climate<\/p>\n

While Nuevo Laredo is making strides, extreme drought and climate change are testing the fragile balance on the binational river. The Rio Grande provides drinking water for over 6 million people in the United States and Mexico. Farmers from Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico rely on it to irrigate their crops.<\/p>\n

But experts warn that current water consumption levels cannot be sustained. The Amistad Reservoir, upstream of Laredo, hit historic lows during July 2024. Climate change will further reduce the river\u2019s flow<\/a>. <\/p>\n

A November 2025 study led by the World Wildlife Fund<\/a> found that 52% of water consumption in the Rio Grande Basin is unsustainable, causing depletion of reservoirs, aquifers and river flows. American Rivers named the Lower Rio Grande the fifth most endangered river<\/a> in the United States this year.<\/p>\n

The Rio Grande is the only source of water for Nuevo Laredo and Laredo. But sometimes the river drops so low that the pumps at the water treatment plant struggle to draw in water, Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo said. She touted COMAPA\u2019s purple pipe program, which diverts treated wastewater for outdoor irrigation and industrial use, but said more must be done to conserve and re-use water. <\/p>\n

\u201cWithout the river, we don\u2019t have the two Laredos,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo said she would like Nuevo Laredo to directly re-use treated wastewater for domestic supply, known as direct potable reuse. <\/p>\n

\u201cTreated wastewater is the only water resource whose supply will always go up as the population increases,\u201d she wrote in a statement. \u201c[Direct reuse] would redefine the future of water on the border.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another Rio Grande city, El Paso<\/a>, is rolling out this technology. But Fern\u00e1ndez Gallardo knows the municipal administration\u2019s time to execute projects is running out.<\/p>\n

Escalating tensions between the United States and Mexico are felt locally. While Mexico increased Rio Grande water deliveries<\/a> to the United States in the past year, the Trump administration has threatened Mexico<\/a> with additional tariffs and even sanctions if the nation does not deliver more to Texas. Meanwhile, Mexican officials have attributed the shortfall to the ongoing drought.<\/p>\n

\"\"A Border Patrol vehicle is parked next to the Las Palmas Trail near the Rio Grande in Laredo on Oct. 28. Brenda Baz\u00e1n for Inside Climate News<\/p>\n

The Trump administration quickly replaced several of the U.S. officials essential to the Nuevo Laredo project, including Salazar, the ambassador, and Giner<\/a>, the well-liked IBWC commissioner. <\/p>\n

The Trump administration is also moving forward with plans for a border wall<\/a> through Laredo, which local organizations, including the Rio Grande International Study Center, oppose.<\/p>\n

Water quality woes on the Rio Grande have attracted little national attention. But EPA administrator Lee Zeldin has pressured Mexico to stop the sewage flows from Tijuana. The EPA has struck agreements with Mexico to accelerate the timeline<\/a> to repair the Tijuana treatment plant. <\/p>\n

\"\"Martin Castro holds up a water sample collected from the Rio Grande in Laredo on Oct. 28. Brenda Baz\u00e1n for Inside Climate News<\/p>\n

A State Department spokesperson said that the U.S. and Mexico have \u201claunched a new era of cooperation characterized by swift and decisive actions.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo other bilateral relationship has a greater effect on the daily lives of the American people and President Trump and his cabinet are committed to improving the welfare, health, and prosperity of our border communities,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

The EPA also funds NADBank\u2019s grants for wastewater infrastructure<\/a> on the border. Congress has not passed a full federal budget for 2026. Nonetheless, the spending bills for environment and natural resource agencies that passed through committee maintained support for the EPA\u2019s border wastewater programs. The Senate bill<\/a> would appropriate $36 million and the House bill<\/a> $45 million for border wastewater projects, comparable to recent years.<\/p>\n

CSU\u2019s Mumme said that the Trump administration\u2019s increasing hostility toward Mexico could backfire. <\/p>\n

\u201cTrump is used to bullying his way. But that only goes so far,\u201d he said. \u201cMexico does have leverage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mumme said the history of cooperation shows that the U.S. and Mexico can achieve common goals, on issues from wastewater to water scarcity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no substitute to cooperating and finding mutually beneficial solutions,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Disclosure: Texas A&M International University has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune\u2019s journalism. Find a complete\u00a0list of them here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Audio recording is automated for accessibility. Humans wrote and edited the story. See our AI policy, and give…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":342526,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[192,84809,171733,79,41034],"class_list":["post-342525","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-environment","tag-laredo","tag-nuevo-laredo","tag-science","tag-u-s-mexico-border"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342525","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=342525"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342525\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/342526"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=342525"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=342525"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=342525"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}