Officials with the International Boundary and Water Commission announced progress in resolving the Tijuana sewage crisis during a public forum Feb. 13, but they were met with an outcry of frustration from community residents.
“You spend all your life savings on a home and then you can’t even open a window because the sewage is that bad,” said 37-year-old Jonathan Ranon, a San Ysidro resident who said his boots turned grey from the contaminated water near his residence along the Mexican border in Coral Gate.
Ranon was among more than 50 people in attendance at the first public meeting held since last October in the heart of one of the communities most affected by the ongoing cross border sewage pollution crisis.
“We are very cognizant of the fact that beach closures have greatly impacted the region,” Commissioner Maria-Elena Giner told the crowd. “It is unacceptable; I am taking this very personal and have really worked hard to get this up and running. You will see improvements soon … We are applying efforts that will benefit the entire region, not just Coronado, not just Imperial Beach, but also your community.”
Earlier that day, Giner said the IBWC anticipates several improvements by the summer, and in Tijuana, the San Antonio de los Buenos (SAB) wastewater treatment plant is also expected to be online in March.
Giner said the Mexican plant is being tested and stabilized before it begins treatment of 17 million gallons per day of untreated sewage by the end of next month.
Progress on Design
Ahead of Thursday’s meeting, Giner said the IBWC expects to complete the conceptual design for the rehab and expansion of its San Ysidro plant within 16 months.
Before then, “we envision in June being able to roll out to the public what our schedule is going to be,” Giner said.
More than a billion gallons of untreated wastewater from Mexico has contaminated the Tijuana River Valley and Pacific coastline in recent years. Local political leaders, including members of Congress, have secured more than $650 million to address the public health concerns and beach closures.
Giner said the budget includes a doubling of capacity at the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment plant – from a daily average of 25 million gallons to 50 million gallons, with a peak of 75 million gallons per day.
Water Compliance
Earlier that week, the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board reported that IBWC has met compliance of secondary treatment effluent standards since November.
Emily Allen, the agency’s area operations manager, said the commission is doing maintenance on primary sedimentation tanks to keep meeting those standards.
Still, the water board says the IBWC remains out of compliance with reporting requirements of its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit, a federal program authorized by the Clean Water Act which oversees sources that discharge pollutants into U.S. waters.
A report from the board says it has issued 15 notices of violation to USIBWC for “alleged violations related to effluent exceedances, late report submissions, inadequate maintenance, and unauthorized discharges of waste” to the Pacific Ocean through the South Bay Ocean Outfall.
Last month, the agency experienced another spill event in a series of major spills at the Hollister pump station, followed by a spill at the Goats Pump Station on Jan. 26.
These systems have resumed operations. Pumps and tanks still need to be replaced, but those projects are expected in the years ahead, according to Isela Canava, principal engineer at the IBWC’s operations department.
In the meantime, residents like Ranon are left to deal with contaminated water, foul air and loads of trash entering the Tijuana River channel.
The San Diego County Air Pollution Control District (SDAPCD) announced the launch of an Air Improvement Relief Effort program to distribute 10,000 purifiers and filters to South San Diego households impacted by hydrogen sulfide odors in the Tijuana River Valley.
“We understand that this multi-faceted issue is affecting the quality of life of South Bay communities,” said Paula Forbis, the district’s air pollution control officer, in a statement on Feb. 12. “Our intention with this program is to provide some relief to those most impacted by the odors.”
