International Boundary & Water Commission

Established in 1889, the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) has responsibility for applying the boundary and water treaties between the United States and Mexico and settling differences that may arise in their application. The IBWC is an international body composed of the United States Section and the Mexican Section, each headed by an Engineer-Commissioner appointed by his/her respective president. Each section is administered independently of the other. The United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission (USIBWC) is a federal government agency and is headquartered in El Paso, Texas. The IBWC operates under the foreign policy guidance of the Department of State. The Mexican Section is under the administrative supervision of the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is headquartered in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico.

The mission of the IBWC is to apply the rights and obligations that the Governments of the United States and Mexico assume under boundary and water treaties, and to do so in way that benefits the social and economic welfare of people on both sides of the boundary and improves relations between the two countries.

As provided for in treaties and agreements, those rights and obligations include: distribution between the two countries of the waters of the Rio Grande and the Colorado River; regulation and conservation of the waters of the Rio Grande by joint construction, operation and maintenance of international reservoirs; regulation of the Colorado River waters allocated to Mexico; protection of lands along the river from floods by levee and floodway projects; solution of border sanitation and other border water quality problems; preservation of the Rio Grande and Colorado River as the international boundary; and demarcation of the land boundary.

In addition to cooperative projects undertaken to implement existing treaties and international agreements, the U.S. and Mexican Commissioners also make recommendations to their respective Governments for resolution of new or anticipated boundary or water problems. Early detection and evaluation of the problem, and the development of measures for resolution are part of the mission of the IBWC.

Additional Info