Establish a Border Water Quality Protection Unit in San Diego

For decades, billions of gallons of raw sewage, industrial waste, and trash flowing across the US/Mexico border annually have created a public health crisis in South San Diego County and North Baja California.  This cross-border pollution affects our entire region.

• Tens of thousands of people have gotten sick from contaminated water and air
• Our beaches have been closed for more than four years
• Our economy and environment suffer daily

Why it keeps happening:

• The South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant that's supposed to handle this sewage is broken and overwhelmed
• There's no steady funding to fix it and keep it running
• One-time federal fixes aren't enough
• There's no existing treatment infrastructure for contamination in the river
• Contaminated water in the main river channel is entering the air through a process called aerosolization, releasing harmful levels of hydrogen sulfide and other dangerous gasses that are making people sick
• Exposure to hydrogen sulfide is associated with headache, nausea, respiratory irritation, nasal symptoms, and neurological effects, and current evidence indicates that chronic exposure can contribute to persistent respiratory and neurological impacts, with heightened susceptibility among children, older adults, and individuals with preexisting health conditions

AB 58 requires the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to develop health-based threshold levels for human exposure to hydrogen sulfide.  These currently do not exist at a community scale.  

Why this makes sense:

It is important to have health-based threshold levels so that public health officials can better understand the health implications from hydrogen sulfide exposure in impacted communities and develop a response plan.  It's also important for officials communicating with the public about risk of exposure so that people can make informed decisions about where, when, and how to spend time outside in impacted areas. 

Learn more about Surfrider's Clean Border Water Now program here.