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05.16.24

Transboundary Pollution is Creating a Public Health Emergency in San Diego, California

photo credit: This is CA

Surfrider's Clean Border Water Now program in San Diego is advocating for solutions to one of the most significant public health and environmental justice emergencies in the country.  

The coastline shared by San Diego (California, United States) and Tijuana (Baja, Mexico) is known for stunning beaches, beautiful weather, diverse wildlife, world-class surf breaks, and a rich tapestry of multicultural identities. This region is also home to the Tijuana Estuary - the largest coastal wetland in Southern California, as well as one of the few remaining salt marshes that provides essential nesting ground for over 370 bird species.   

This complex and beautiful region, however, has been plagued with severe pollution for decades. Every day, millions of gallons of contaminated water carrying stormwater runoff, raw sewage, harmful chemicals, and trash traverse the U.S./Mexico border through the Tijuana River Watershed and flow out into the Pacific Ocean in Imperial Beach. Additionally, the San Antonio de los Buenos Wastewater Treatment Plant just south of the border discharges approximately 35 million gallons of untreated sewage into the Pacific Ocean each day. Currents associated with the Southern California Bight carry this pollution up the coast during the summer, causing widespread illnesses on both sides of the border and forcing beach closures throughout South San Diego County. Recent research from the Scripps Institute of Oceanography linked 34,000 illnesses in 2017 to water quality pollution along the Imperial Beach coastline. Another recent study from Scripps revealed that the aerosolization of toxins in the surf is now causing human health effects without any contact with the ocean. People are getting sick just by breathing the air as they go to work, school, and even trying to enjoy their own backyards. This public health and environmental justice emergency has been going on for decades and it’s only getting worse, especially with climate change-related storm events further stressing the already inadequate and failing regional wastewater infrastructure.

MW-225_Hurricane-CBWNThe Surfrider Foundation San Diego Chapter first tried to catch the attention of elected officials to stop the transboundary pollution over 30 years ago and has since been watchdogging this issue and seeking to build the public awareness needed to bring about change. In 2018, without a firm solution in sight, the Surfrider Foundation, working with a coalition of community-focused co-plaintiffs, filed lawsuits under the Clean Water Act against the International Boundary and Water Commision (IBWC) to address rampant and egregious water pollution. While the lawsuits were making their way through the courts, Surfrider continued drawing attention to this issue throughout San Diego and led focus groups consisting of other NGOs, community groups, and government agencies to design a “Stakeholder Solution” – a collective path forward out of the pollution crisis. This work helped inform the Comprehensive Infrastructure Solution (CIS) that the Environmental Protection Agency chose to pursue in 2021. A strong international settlement with the IBWC followed shortly in 2022 and included improved monitoring, communication, and reporting efforts, and most importantly, advancing infrastructure improvements through the EPA-vetted CIS to reduce transboundary flows by approximately 75% year-round and beach closures in San Diego during the summer by about 95%. These infrastructure improvements include expansion and upgrades to the failing International Sewage Treatment Plant in San Diego County and maintenance and expansion of stormwater collection systems on both sides of the border. 

Since then, Surfrider’s advocacy efforts have been focused on raising the funds needed to fully implement the CIS. In 2023, we joined forces with local officials and a growing coalition of community groups and voices to request a state of emergency declaration to gain access to the funding needed to finally get construction of the CIS infrastructure improvements underway. The San Diego County Board of Supervisors first passed a unanimous decision to declare an emergency due to pollution and sewage flowing across the U.S./Mexico border in June. Championed by Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre, the coalition then appealed to both Governor Newsom and President Biden to request a federal emergency declaration. While this declaration has not yet been made, our request did result in a significant amount of federal funding (approximately $150 million) to cover construction costs for the IBWC and policy language in the FY2024 budget to allow other federal and state agencies to contribute funding towards implementation of the Comprehensive Infrastructure Solution. 

Screenshot 2024-05-16 at 3.59.23 PMThese policy wins have been influenced this past year by a growing coalition of over 50 community-based organizations and local leaders who have coalesced to address this issue and its impact on children, youth, and family programs. Surfrider co-leads this diverse coalition with YMCA Camp Surf and Outdoor Outreach, whose collective actions so far have included awareness-raising community events and advocacy activations. 

In 2023, Surfrider San Diego also made a deliberate decision to offer more opportunities for youth engagement and utilized art as a tool for activism and healing to help build momentum for this campaign. Community activities held during Tijuana River Action Month helped prepare and strengthen turnout for a very important California Coastal Commission meeting held in Imperial Beach – one of the frontline communities bearing the brunt of the health impacts caused by transboundary pollution.  

Screenshot 2024-05-16 at 3.59.37 PMThe San Diego Blue Water Task Force also resumed water quality testing at the Imperial Beach Pier after Covid-related school closures had interrupted this program. The first sample was collected in August, just 3 days after California experienced its first tropical storm in 84 years. Tropical Storm Hilary caused 2.5 billion gallons of contaminated stormwater to flow through the Tijuana River Valley. The chapter measured a bacteria count of 9,804 MPN/100 ml, nearly 100 times higher than the health standard for safe recreation. Nearly every water sample collected at the pier since then has also measured high bacteria levels that exceed the health standard. 

While 2023 saw significant policy wins and a growing coalition of organizations and voices join together to raise awareness of the devastating public health, economic, ecosystem, and coastal access issues caused by transboundary sewage and pollution, much work remains to be done. We desperately need to fill a several hundred million dollar funding gap to get the Comprehensive Infrastructure Solution built. We also need to secure an ongoing source of funding to cover operations and maintenance at the International Sewage Treatment Plant to make sure we do not end up in this position again. This will require elevating this issue to our national public consciousness to build the political pressure needed for our state and federal leaders to finally solve this crisis. 

In fact, the Tijuana River was just named one of the top ten most endangered rivers in the United States by American Rivers. We hope the attention and urgency this brings will help households across the country recognize this issue as one of the most egregious, ongoing public health and environmental justice emergencies in the country. Join us today by signing this petition calling on the President and Congress to act now to address this national emergency.  

Watch this short film to hear from people who live and work in Imperial Beach and are directly affected by this pollution.