Water Conservation at Cameron County Irrigation District #2
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ameron County Irrigation District #2 (CCID2) covers a vast area of Texas near the mouth of the Rio Grande known for its fertile soils and citrus crops. In this interview, General Manager Sonia Lambert tells Irrigation Leader about the district’s conservation efforts and its efforts to ensure that it is able to continue serving its customers as it has for more than 100 years.
operational boundaries are so similar, the two have worked out of the same facilities for many years. This obviously made it even more logical for one person to assume oversight of both districts.
Irrigation Leader: Tell us about your background and how you came to be in your current position.
Sonia Lambert: Yes, all the water for the irrigation district is surface water. It comes from the Rio Grande and the Falcon and Amistad Reservoirs, which are international reservoirs owned and run by both Texas and Mexico.
Sonia Lambert: I am the manager of CCID2 and Cameron County Drainage District #3. The two districts work together through an interlocal agreement for my services. I started working for CCID2 through a temporary position that evolved into a permanent position. I have been employed with the irrigation district for 43 years now and have managed both the irrigation and drainage districts for 21 of those 43 years.
Irrigation Leader: Does all the water for the irrigation district come out of the Rio Grande?
Irrigation Leader: How many customers do the districts have? Sonia Lambert: The drainage district has more customers than the irrigation district, because as I noted, it also serves several municipalities. The actual number of people that benefit from the drainage district is hard to nail down, because while it includes several municipalities, it does not necessarily include the entirety of each metropolitan region. The irrigation district is more clear cut, however. Approximately 300 farmers are its customers, and there are a total of about 3,000 landowners within its boundaries. Irrigation Leader: In addition to drawing from storage infrastructure owned by Texas and Mexico, is there additional storage infrastructure that is owned by the irrigation district itself?
Construction of connection for the conversion of earthen lateral canal F to pipeline.
Sonia Lambert: CCID2 is approximately 55,000 acres in size. Its primary purpose is to serve water to agricultural land. The irrigation district pumps water from the Rio Grande to its northern end, a span of about 35 miles. The drainage district has pretty much the same boundaries as the irrigation district, so it is convenient to run both districts simultaneously. The service area for the drainage district also includes three municipalities. The drainage district was established before the irrigation district, but because their
22 | IRRIGATION LEADER | March 2021
Irrigation Leader: Tell us about recent droughts and climatic conditions on the Rio Grande and how they have affected your operations and deliveries. Sonia Lambert: We have been short of water a couple of times in previous years that I recall. Unfortunately, we are expecting a shortage again this year; we are thus in for a tough year. Farmers are completely dependent on the water provided by the irrigation district, and with shortage comes crop loss. One of two things can happen when we experience a shortage of water. Either we continue until we are irrigationleadermagazine.com
PHOTOS COURTESY OF CAMERON COUNTY IRRIGATION DISTRICT #2.
Irrigation Leader: Would you tell us about the history, size, and current services of the two districts you manage?
Sonia Lambert: The district owns three reservoirs and resacas that are used to store water that has already been pumped from the Rio Grande. These are greatly beneficial to the irrigation district when the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s Water Master Program offers what is called no-charge water, which is not deducted off the district’s water account balance.
