Border treatment plant accused of releasing extreme levels of sewage and chemicals into Tijuana River Valley and out to sea
SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — The operators of the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant in the Tijuana River Valley are being accused of releasing untreated water containing “extremely high levels” of raw sewage and toxic chemicals into the valley and out to the Pacific Ocean.
Both San Diego Coastkeeper and the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation have sent a letter to the International Boundary and Water Commission warning they will sue the agency if the facility continues to release contaminated water.
San Diego Coastkeeper alleges that the plant is discharging extremely high levels of sewage and toxic chemicals into the Tijuana River and Pacific Ocean in violation of its Clean Water Act permit, “leading to years of public health impacts, beach closures and degradation of the Tijuana River Estuary.”
The wastewater plant, which is operated by the IBWC, sits on the U.S. side of the border and is supposed to treat water coming in from Mexico before pumping it out.
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It was built in 1990, but over the years, it has become outdated and is in need of a total overhaul, according to the IBWC.
In September, officials with the IBWC said the plant needed more than $150 million in deferred maintenance, but it required anywhere from $600 million to $900 million to renovate and increase capacity at the facility.
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According to the agencies threatening to sue the IBWC, the plant is violating the Clean Water Act by:
• Discharges of DDT, PCBs, hexachlorobenzene and other hazardous chemicals at thousands of times the permit limit.
• Violations of receiving water limits for bacteria in the Pacific Ocean at hundreds of times the limit, in areas designated for water recreation and shellfish harvesting.
• Failure to submit self-monitoring reports, depriving the public of meaningful access to information about the treatment plant’s discharges.
“The continued discharge of residual water and chemical products by the IBWC are threatening public health, degrading the Tijuana Estuary and our coastal waters denying people along the border their right to live and recreate in a safe and clean environment,” said Phillip Musegaas, executive director of Coastkeeper.
Border Report and Fox5 San Diego reached out to the IBWC about the allegations being made by San Diego Coastkeeper and the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation, but because of the implied legal action, the agency referred us to the Department of Justice for comment.
It responded by saying “we don’t have a comment.”
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