San Diego County will spend $5 million to expand removal of sewage and trash from Mexico that accumulates in the Tijuana River Valley.
On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a plan that involves building a sediment- and trash-control basin and dredging the drainage channels, known as Smuggler’s Gulch and Pilot Channel, that often build up with debris after storms.
Flows through the concrete channels repeatedly release sewage, trash and other pollutants into the Tijuana River and flood nearby communities after major rains. South County beaches are frequently closed as a result of winter storms that wash polluted flows through the river watershed.
Dredging is the removal of sediments and debris from the bottom of water bodies and is routinely needed because sedimentation gradually fills channels, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The project is funded by $750,000 in county funds and a $4.25 million grant from the California Water Resources Control Board. Earlier this year, the state board had approved $34 million for six projects designed to improve water quality in the Tijuana River Valley and New River.
Over the years, several local, state and federal agencies have worked to develop plans to address cross-border pollution, and removing debris from the river and channels has been among those efforts.
The county and city of San Diego are responsible for removing accumulated sediment in portions of the channels because both own land where the gulch is located.
Smuggler’s Gulch, which enters the U.S. from Mexico, runs north until it connects with the Pilot Channel and ultimately flows into the river. The Pilot Channel flows toward the Pacific Ocean via a southern channel of the river. In 1993, the city built the Pilot Channel to address flooding in the area due to winter storms.
The county’s project will cover dredging work in both Smuggler’s Gulch and the Pilot Channel. A staff report said the county is working with the city on the approach, “with the understanding that the proposed dredging activities are short-term in nature and do not indicate the County’s willingness or intent to take on maintenance of City-owned property within Smuggler’s Gulch or any portion of the Pilot Channel.”
Supervisor Jim Desmond said that while the county will be taking on the work at the channels, which span more than 9,000 feet in length, “I don’t want to be locked into us now taking care of the entire portion” of the waterways.
County officials said the project is a step in the right direction and one of many needed to end the sewage crisis that has affected Tijuana and South Bay communities for years.
Tijuana’s wastewater system has had numerous pipeline breaks and other challenges that have been exacerbated by winter storms in recent years. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has laid out a $630 million plan to improve conditions that focuses largely on installing a pumping station in the river. Plans are also underway to replace a broken wastewater treatment plant in Mexico and upgrade one based in San Ysidro.
“This is really, I think, demonstration to the community that we’re not going to stop and we’re gonna continue to fight so they can have a livable community and that they can actually breathe in their community,” said Chairperson Nora Vargas.
