CA lawmakers up pressure on federal government to address South Bay sewage
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — California lawmakers advanced a resolution on Thursday to demand the federal government declare a national emergency and disperse $310 million in funds to address the ongoing sewage crisis that has crippled South Bay communities for years.
The joint resolution, introduced in early February by a coalition of San Diego-area legislators, joins other pleas from elected officials to put an end to the discharge of waste from facilities — one in San Ysidro and others in Tijuana — that has overwhelmed the region’s coastal waters.
The Assembly voted to approve the resolution during Thursday’s floor session, moving it to the State Senate.
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“The Tijuana River has been experiencing decades-long cross-border water pollution, causing numerous health problems, significant beach closures, and environmental damage,” said San Diego Assemblymember David Alvarez, one of the authors of the resolution. “The Federal Government must act now!”
The bill specifically asks Congress to pass an emergency supplemental request from President Joe Biden that includes the $310 million grant to “prevent and reduce sewage flows” through much-needed repairs and expansion to the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant.
It also implores the Biden administration to declare a national state of emergency to “fast-track” these improvements due to the health concerns and local impacts of the pollution, which has closed stretches of the region’s southernmost coastline for over 800 consecutive days.
The South Bay plant, which is managed by the U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), has been a focal point for its role in the discharge of billions of gallons of waste into the Tijuana watershed, flowing up the coast as far north as Coronado.
In 2021, Congress passed $300 million for the modernization and expansion of the treatment plant as part of a larger $630 million plan by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the sanitation of the Tijuana River basin.
Since then, however, regional water quality officials have learned the cost to complete all necessary repairs and expansions to the wastewater system has climbed from about $600 million to about $900 million, according to a San Diego Union-Tribune report from September.
The IBWC also acknowledged last year that the failing plant would need at least $150 million in repairs just to bring it back into basic working condition.
Recent storms have exacerbated these infrastructure weaknesses. According to IWBC estimates, the storm on Jan. 22 pushed upwards of 14 billion of gallons of water tainted with sewage to flow into the Pacific ocean through the Tijuana watershed.
“It’s the worst its every been,” Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre said in a conversation with Nexstar’s Border Report. “This plant has been operating on the verge of collapse.”
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San Diego County declared a local state of emergency over the cross-border pollution in June of last year to amp up pressure on federal officials to address the issue. California Gov. Gavin Newsom sent a letter to Biden two months later asking for federal funding to fix the plant.
“We need the federal government to dedicate the resources necessary to address this situation now,” a joint statement read in support of the resolution from the cities of Coronado and Imperial Beach. “While there have been recent efforts by both the United States and Mexico to dedicate resources to solve the problem, it is not enough, and millions of gallons of sewage continue to cross the border and impact our community.”
With Thursday’s vote, the joint resolution will advance to the State Senate where it will be heard at a date to be determined.
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