09/03/2026
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When is a river no longer a river? In the case of the Rio Grande, this isn’t some existential riddle. The state’s most iconic geographic feature is one of the most threatened rivers in the country.
In recent years the crisis has entered a critical new era. It is worse—significantly worse—than most realize. And the disaster is not merely environmental. Some 15 million people depend on the Rio Grande for drinking water, and experts fear that some of their taps could run dry as early as next year.
The river fuels billions of dollars in agricultural production across Texas, Colorado, New Mexico, and multiple states in northern Mexico. For countless farmers, their way of life is at risk. The shortage has also escalated a long-festering international dispute. The U.S. and Mexico have clashed over the river’s waters for decades, and tensions are more charged than ever.
Blood has already been spilled, and the prospect of more-widespread violence—not to mention a mass-migration event—appears increasingly likely. Writer Jack Herrera and photographer Jordan Vonderhaar travelled across the entirety of the Rio Grande basin, from its headwaters, in Colorado, to where its muddy waters enter the Gulf of Mexico, nearly two thousand miles away. From their yearlong investigation, the news isn’t all grim. Solutions are available, but implementing them will require sacrifice and political will. The clock is ticking.
Read the full story here: txmnth.ly/4gTjvHc
📸: Jordan Vonderhaar
