SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — A group of federal, state and local politicians from California announced Thursday morning the creation of the Border Water Quality Restoration and Protection Act to mitigate the ongoing sewage crisis in the Tijuana River Valley.
Similar legislation, which has been used to protect and restore bodies of water throughout the country such as Chesapeake Bay and the Great Lakes, provides a strong foundation for the Border Water Quality Restoration and Protection Act.
Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., believes it will also work in the Tijuana River Valley and Tijuana Estuary.
“Today, we’re going on offense,” Padilla said.
The senator used a football metaphor to describe the proactive start of projects designed to mitigate the sewage flows from Mexico through the Tijuana River Valley into the Tijuana Estuary and the Pacific Ocean.
“Raw sewage and toxic waste continues to shut down our beaches, air is threatening the health of our community and even jeopardizes training of our military and our border personnel,” he said.
According to Padilla, the legislation designates the Environmental Protection Agency as the lead agency to coordinate all federal, state, tribal and local agencies to build and maintain critical infrastructure projects to address long-standing, systemic water infrastructure and pollution issues in the Tijuana River and New River watershed near Calexico, California.
The bill also creates “a new geographic program within EPA to manage the watershed through a comprehensive water quality management plan.”
“We’re now playing with real money,” said Rep. Scott Peters, D-Calif.
Peters and others say money is no longer the issue, with more than $400 million secured for projects such as the refurbishment of the International Wastewater Treatment Plant, which will take in sewage from Mexico and treat it before releasing the clean water into the ocean.
“It is hard to see that kind of money, hundreds of millions of dollars to come our way this far from Washington D.C.,” said Peters.
Others, including San Diego County Board of Supervisors Chair Nora Vargas, believe this is finally the beginning of the end to the sewage crisis in the Tijuana River Valley.
“Over a thousand days of not being able to use our beaches, if this is not the environmental crisis of our lifetime, I don’t know what is,” said Vargas. “I have to believe it’s going to happen. I have never seen the Mexican government working as fast as it’s happening right now.”
Congressman Juan Vargas, who represents the Tijuana River Valley area, also applauded the new legislation and is confident it will finally bring some relief to his constituents and others affected by the sewage.
“From terrible smells to closed beaches, toxic sewage pollution hurts our communities daily,” Vargas said. “We must have a streamlined and effective federal response, but right now, there is no one agency in charge of addressing the pollution — there are too many cooks in the kitchen.”
Vargas and the others like the idea of having the EPA oversee the sewage mitigation projects in the Tijuana River Valley.
“This legislation would put the EPA in charge of coordinating with federal, state, and local agencies to respond to the sewage pollution, streamlining decision-making and strategic planning between agencies. We’re committed to working to combat this pollution, and this bill is an important step towards that goal.”