SOUTH BAY (KGTV) — Imperial Beach residents are reporting noticeable improvements in water quality and odor as federal agencies work to address the ongoing Tijuana sewage crisis that has plagued the South Bay community for years.
"Definitely the smell has been pretty mild," Giana Bertrand, an Imperial Beach resident, said. "Lately it's been pretty clear, its blue."
The coastal community has been one of the hardest hit by cross-border sewage flows, particularly during wet weather events that exacerbate contamination levels.
"It's been progressively getting better, I just hope it gets fixed[permanently]," Renee Dolfon said.
The Environmental Protection Agency reports it is ahead of schedule on infrastructure upgrades designed to tackle the complex pollution problem. The agency is seriously upgrading infrastructure, including increasing the capacity of the wastewater treatment plant near the border.
Officials have also accelerated timelines for most infrastructure projects, cutting project completion estimates by roughly 12 years across all initiatives.
The Tijuana River and San Antonio de los Buenos Creek dump billions of gallons of raw sewage into the South Bay each year, according to the EPA's website. In addition, funding for these projects comes from money already appropriated for addressing the sewage crisis, meaning no new funding is being allocated to the effort.
The EPA and partner agencies are planning a joint public update and new agreement by the end of 2025, which should provide additional details about the ongoing remediation efforts.
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