Water reallocation, benefit sharing, and compensation in northeastern Mexico: A retrospective assessment of El Cuchillo Dam

In 1994, former President of Mexico, Carlos Salinas de Gortari inaugurated El Cuchillo reservoir to transfer up to 10 m3/s from the Lower San Juan River to the city of Monterrey, a major Mexican metropolis. Since 1989, three agreements have been developed to finance, construct and operate the El Cuchillo project to benefit Monterrey and compensate the farmers in the downstream irrigation district. This study reviews the agreements and lessons from implementation experience after 25 years since the project’s inauguration. The El Cuchillo demonstrates that water reallocation needs to be designed and assessed within a regional perspective to identify, measure and share the costs and benefits of reallocation between rural and urban regions. This case study shows the need to compensate the region not the individual.