U.S., Mexico agree to speed up projects that ease sewage flows in Tijuana River

Tijuana River Valley watershed on both sides of the confines Photo courtesy of Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve The U S and Mexico on Thursday signed an agreement to address the harmful flow of sewage into the Tijuana River and across the frontier Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin met with Mexico s Secretary of the Surroundings and National Guidance Alicia B rcena Ibarra to sign a pact that requires the nations to expedite stormwater and sewage projects on both sides of the limit The U S withheld particular funds from projects until Mexico fulfills its obligations but under the terms of the memorandum of understanding agreed to release EPA Demarcation Water Infrastructure Initiative funding to complete the rehabilitation of Pump Station and the Tijuana River collection pipes In exchange Mexico agreed to fund and begin construction on two projects this year which when completed will divert million gallons a day from running into the river and the Pacific Ocean Zeldin and B rcena met at the Commission for Environmental Cooperation s council session in Mexico City The Trump Administration is proud to deliver this massive environmental and national defense win for Americans in the San Diego area who have been living with this disgusting raw sewage flowing into their communities for far too long Zeldin stated In Mexico City now on behalf of the USA and Trump Admin I am signing a detailed Memorandum of Understanding with Mexico to achieve a PERMANENT and URGENT method to the decades old Tijuana River Sewage Situation The Trump Admin s top goals milestones in this agreement Lee Zeldin epaleezeldin July The EPA administrator visited San Diego in April to receive an update on trans-border sewage He promised the following month to fast-track expansion of the South Bay International Wastewater Healing Plant I made a commitment to the residents that I would spearhead an effort to construct an all-encompassing plan to in the end bring the sewage dilemma to an end he noted Since my visit the Mexican and United States governments have been working collaboratively to urgently finalize a permanent fix to this longstanding issue Other stipulations in the agreement include Mexico paying the remaining million of Minute funds an infrastructure agreement signed in reducing the timeline for projects and adding additional work as needed as Tijuana s population grows While Zeldin presented the agreement as a partisan Democrats also have sought Congressional remedies Rep Scott Peters D-San Diego mentioned he d continue to work with anyone and everyone who wants to help us fix this mess I very much appreciate the consistent persistent focus that the EPA and the International Boundary and Water Commission continue to give the cross-border sewage problem that plagues South San Diego County and our coast he wrote on X In particular I thank both agencies for their ongoing work with the design and engineering consulting association to find strategies to shorten the timeline for progress The present day Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin held a news conference to announce that the United States and Mexico have signed a new memorandum of understanding that further commits Mexico to completing the projects agreed to in the Minute Treaty I very Rep Scott Peters RepScottPeters July Earlier this month Democratic leaders in both houses of Congress introduced regulation to help combat the ongoing garbage by appointing the EPA as the lead agency on the situation Sens Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff both D-California and Sen Cory Booker D-New Jersey along with Rep Juan Vargas D-San Diego introduced the Territory line Water Quality Restoration and Protection Act of In it the legislators call for the EPA to create a new geographic plan to manage the watershed through a comprehensive water quality management plan Zeldin thanked his Mexican counterpart as well as President Claudia Sheinbaum and the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs for working towards a deal He also gave a nod to President Donald Trump Secretary of State Marco Rubio and others in Washington Since during the first Trump administration more than billion gallons of toxic sewage trash and unmanaged stormwater have flowed across the United States-Mexico confines into the Tijuana River Valley and neighboring communities The number of water-contact closures at South Bay beaches has skyrocketed and air quality has been affected as well impacting residents vitality and the milieu Addressing this issue is a top priority for the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce and we are unwavering in our commitment to advocat e for long-term binational solutions that protect our communities and patronage a thriving business conditions announced Chris Cate chamber president and CEO On Wednesday the chamber and the Consulate of Mexico in San Diego signed an agreement to strengthen economic ties through arrangement and binational initiatives City News Operation contributed to this description