No Border Sewage (NoBS)Surfrider San Diego Chapter

No B.S. is a campaign by Surfrider, San Diego, to address the environmental threats affecting the wetland areas and beaches of the border region. Through No B.S. we hope to raise awareness and education of this incredibly overwhelming problem.

“Shared Pollution needs a shared solution”

Los Laureles Canyon, “a secondhand town,” in Tijuana.

The rain picks up pollutants as it washes across dirt roads, streets and urban canyons in the outskirts of Tijuana, where tens of thousands live in ramshackle villages called colonias.

Rain from a Dec. 17, 2008 storm caused the river to spew an estimated 3 billion gallons of contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean in one 24-hour period

Tijuana Sloughs – Outside Shore Break 6-8ft -unridden

Tijuana Estuary

• Over 90% of the Estuaries in Southern California have been destroyed.

• Tijuana Estuary is one of the most intact estuarine systems left .

• The Tijuana Estuary is 2,500 acres of undeveloped wetland habitat and is the end point of the TJ River Watershed.

• Home to 5 endangered and 2 threatened bird species

• In 2010, the Tijuana River Moutn State Marine Conservation area was designated as part of the CA Marine Life Protection Initiative.

Major Threats to the Tijuana River Watershed

Water Pollution from Mexico

Los Laureles Canyon Solid Waste Pollution & Sediment

Alamar Channelization Projects

West end of Dairy Mart Road Jan 2011

Trash in TJ River Valley

Tijuana River Watershed

• 4000 tires wash across the

border estuary and nearby beaches every year.

• We export 2 million tires to Mexico every year to keep them out of California landfills and then they end up coming back when it rains through the Tijuana River channel at the end of the pipe

• The runoff from Mexico contains not only trash and silt, which over time chokes the fragile estuary on the U.S. side of the border, it also carries disease-causing pathogens and toxic waste from so-called maquiladora manufacturing plants.

Who does this affect?

Sediment can have catastrophic impacts to the health of coastal wetlands such as the Tijuana Estuary. In 2005, nearly 20 acres of salt marsh were lost due to cross-border sediment.

Mexico is working hard to resolve the sediment and trash problems on the international border, however this is a large complex issue. 

Sediment Funding Proposal is an important step in partnering with Mexico to keep our environment healthy.

Goat Canyon Sediment Basins

Who does this affect?

• Surfers, Divers, Fisherman, Lifeguards, Beach Users, Ranchers, business owners…it affects us all!!!!

• Navy SEALs used to train in Imperial Beach but don’t anymore because it’s too polluted.

• High levels of Hepatitis A were found off South San Diego Beaches within 72 hrs after a rain event. 

• In 2005, U.S. border patrol agents won a class action lawsuit to receive hazardous work pay for working by the Tijuana River.  It’s that polluted!

• Every year it costs U.S. taxpayers millions of dollars to collect and dispose of the trash and sediment deposited in San Diego County by the Tijuana River. These include tires, plastics, and hazardous waste.

http://www.sccoos.org/data/tracking/IB/

Plume monitoring shows polluted waters stretch all the way from the border to Coronado beaches.

According to the County Department of Environmental Health in 2012 beaches in Imperial Beach were closed due to contamination 138 days. (In rainy years the beaches are closed more frequently.)

Every year, 80-95% of San Diego County's total beach closures are due to Tijuana River pollution.

Currently the government of Mexico has upgraded its treatment plants to tertiary standards, which is higher than the treatment done at the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant in San Diego.

Mexican treatment plants Arturo Herrera and La Morita treat ten and six million gallons per day respectively.

470,000 gallons of wastewater treated at the new Arturo Herrera Plant are used daily to irrigateLandscaping at Morelo s Park.

Upgrades to Tijuana's sewage system have opened newpossibilities for reuse and are expected to lead to cleaner beaches on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.

What can we do?

• Water Testing and Reporting data to agencies – BEACH Act Program Funding

• Native Plant Restoration in the TJ Watershed

• Cleanups and Stewardship events

• Bi-national efforts• Awareness Events• Tours of Impacted areas• Working with Local, State, and

Federal Agencies and Elected Officials

• Expansion of Tijuana sewer infrastructure is necessary

• EPA’s Border Environmental Infrastructure Grants

• Grassroots efforts

Tijuana River Action Network

• Cross-border collaboration to address the conservation and restoration of the Tijuana River watershed by engaging in outreach, education, and being advocates for natural resources.

• Colaboracion transfronteriza para atender la conservacion y restayracuib de la cuenca del rio Tijuana comprometiendonos a involucrara la sociedad, promover la educacion y defender los recureos naturals.

Tijuana River Action Month

Tijuana River Action Month

• 2012 Summary • 2753 Volunteers, 4112 Participants• 25 hours, 8240 Volunteer hours• 6 miles of Trails improved, 3 acres of habitat

improved• 62,646 Lbs of trash, 687 Tires, 29671 Lbs of

recyclables• 100 Native Plants• Grand Total = 64,736 lbs of solid waste

Ocean Monitoring and Public Knowledge

• Spill in April 2012 and March 2013

• Lack of adequate communication between US and Mexico.

• Slow response time to close the beaches due to spill.

• Grassroots efforts to find source of spill and inform IBWC, local authorities and Department of Health to close beaches.

• Improve Communications

San Diego Water Quality:Does the Current Water quality-testing and Notification Process Protect Ocean

Enthusiasts from Sewage Contaminated Water?

Upstream Water Testing

• Surfrider and San Diego Coastkeeper Partnership

• Source Point Testing for Pollutants – dangerous nutrients from treated sewage, enteric pathogens, pesticides, heavy metals, and trash.

• Publish and submit the data and use it to directly influence the knowledge that decision makers have on the health of the Tijuana River and Watershed.

San Diego Water Quality Testing Background

• Coastkeeper (CK) and SSD NoBS Campaign (NoBS)– Highlighted Tijuana River Valley (TRV) unique impacts– Drew core volunteers to South County– Impact on SSD volunteer retention– Source point vs. end point pollution (Surfrider Mission)– Data analysis disconnect

• County DEH samples beaches April 1st – October 31st

– Once weekly, twice most popular beaches– Winter sampling drops significantly– CK publishes results under no “formal agreement”

• Efficacy of extensive water testing in San Diego County– Equinox Quality of Life Dashboard

Findings• Program Effectiveness (RQ1):

– Results show both programs as partially effective– Can’t overcome the stoke of surfing– Leadership is not in agreement

• Tools and strategies to make effective program. (RQ2)– Input from staff, members and PUBLIC– MIMNOE tools for evaluation– Goals identifiable, measurable and agreed upon– Leadership chosen

• BWTF/NoBS Collaboration/ SSD Exclusive facility (RQ3)– Results show probable success– Both committed to clean water– Facility- heavy disagreement, right time now – Want something different than current programs

Findings• RQ4: Are there new alliances that could potentially

provide new funding streams (or access) to SSD that would benefit with an alliance with the most respected environmental organization in San Diego?– CVC – non traditional alliances

• Produce environmental capital– Goal of SSD, only Tijuana River or all of San Diego?

• San Diego Trial Run– Four hour testing began April First ending Oct. 31st

• Report 60 days after to County Board of Supervisors– Unfortunately recent testing didn’t include rapid testing April 13th.

– No State Approval– Old testing simultaneously

Recommendations• DEH Trail Run

– Reenergize BWTF• EC select motivated chair• BWTF four specific task forceregions• Task Force Responsibilities

– Training– Daily Sampling– Collaborating– Posting Results– Rapid Reaction Sampling– Develop attainable goals

– Establish Non Traditional Collaboration

• County DEH– CVC Transferred Value

Conclusions• NoBS and DEH not completely effective• DEH closes and opens beaches early and late• CVC w/ linked interest is the collaborative future• Future Research -

– Increase SSD sample size, determine their goals• BWTF and NoBS Collaboration would be successful

– Leadership for new BWTF could hurt NoBS– Tackle another campaign – EC must be committed to new BWTF– Testing Facility easy, but putting cart before the horse

• Current DEH is doomed to fail– Lack vision, commitment and staff– Sampling once a week defeats faster results

• Synergistic alliance w/ DEH is the future

QUESTIONS?TJ River