By DAVID LOPEZ
Special to the NEWS
The United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission (USIBWC) held a public meeting of the Lower Rio Grande Citizens Forum (LRGCF) last Wednesday via webinar.
The purpose of the forum was to promote the exchange of information between the USIBWC and the community regarding Commission projects and related activities in the lower Rio Grande Valley.
Commissioner Maria-Elena Giner provided an overview of the USIBWC budget process and appropriations and discussed what it takes to manage water along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Among their responsibilities are sanitation, flood control, water delivery, dams and hydroelectric plants, and boundary demarcation.
The USIBWC’s local field office in Mercedes is responsible for operating and maintaining the lower Rio Grande Flood Control Project, among other responsibilities.
Giner explained the federal budget process as it pertains to USIBWC, highlighting projects benefitting the lower Rio Grande Valley, such as the Edinburg Levee and Hydraulic Models.
Located near Peñitas in Hidalgo County, the $6.5 million Edinburg Levee Design-Build consists of the design and construction of approximately 800 linear feet of levee improvements. The project, awarded in Dec. 2021, to Conti Federal Service, LCC, is estimated to be completed in the spring of 2025.
Its major construction features include levee construction, construction of floodwalls, replacing an existing gate well structure, and the construction of levee ramps.
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