San Diego County Supervisors Accept Possible Legal Options Over Border Sewage Crisis

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to take legal action against the companies plaintiffs claim are responsible for the Tijuana River Valley’s sewage pollution crisis.

Supervisors voted on the measure proposed by Terra Lawson-Remer and Nora Vargas, after hearing a staff presentation on the county’s efforts to help residents affected by pollution.

According to a release from Lawson-Remer’s office, the county’s legal counsel must, every 90 days, present to the Board of Supervisors updates and available opportunities to pursue legal action against any party potentially responsible for damage to the Valley , the Tijuana River Estuary and Marine Reserve, and surrounding neighborhoods.

“Under policy, options should include, but are not limited to, the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act,” Lawson-Remer’s office said.

Last week, Lawson-Remer joined a group of Imperial Beach residents who sued Veolia Water Operating Services and Veolia Water North America-West, entities that operate the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant.

“The Tijuana River sewage crisis is a critical regional issue and an environmental crisis for our entire country. The coastal communities I represent are greatly impacted,” Lawson-Remer said while addressing the plaintiffs.

The move is not unprecedented, as the county has successfully sued opioid manufacturers for more than $100 million and is in the process of suing a ghost gun company.

Veolia, a French company, was also involved in the Flint, Michigan, water crisis and has been in litigation over other public health crises in Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Colombia.

In a statement, Veolia called the allegations “baseless” and said the majority of wastewater and associated odors and pollution originate in Tijuana and do not enter the wastewater treatment plant.

During public comment Tuesday, a Veolia official told the board that it was unfair to blame his company for the wastewater crisis.

“No one can operate a wastewater treatment plant properly when flooding breaks pumps, breaks equipment and fills tanks,” said Adam Lisberg, senior vice president of external communications. “Attacking our business distracts us from the real root causes we’ve all heard about here.”

A plant manager urged supervisors to tour the facility. “Please come see what we’re doing,” he said. “We’ve been working on this for years.”

A woman who identified herself as a county employee said it was not surprising that the crisis had “hit unserved areas, making the county’s response more critical.”

“The louder the wheel squeaks, the more oil it will receive,” she said, adding that polluters must be held accountable.

“It’s not just a federal task, it’s the county that needs to be more vocal,” she said.

Vargas, the board chairwoman, said the county is working to end the pollution crisis and added that Mexico is also doing its part in terms of improving the Baja California plant.

“It’s not something we take lightly,” Vargas said.

Lawson-Remer, vice president of the board, said Tuesday that the border sewage problem is also a regional problem; including in North County cities like Carlsbad.

According to Lawson-Remer, in 2017 the county “was preparing to take legal action over the wastewater violations currently being reported by Imperial Beach residents, but the previous Board of Supervisors instead opted for inaction,” said Lawson-Remer. she declared.

“It’s a new day in San Diego County,” Lawson-Remer said. “The weight of county government, united with that of our residents, will help hold entities that violate the rights to clean air, water and beaches accountable and take action.”

The San Diego City Council recently approved a resolution calling for a national emergency over sewage flow at the border. The council had approved 31 consecutive years of extending the local state of emergency in response to the situation.

The council first declared a state of emergency due to pollution – ranging from raw sewage to industrial runoff – in 1993. Imperial Beach issued a similar declaration in 2017, followed by the county in 2023.

Since October 2018, the U.S. Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission has documented more than 200 billion gallons of toxic waste entering the United States through the Tijuana River Valley.

According to a city document on Tuesday’s resolution, the commission spent only $4 million of the $40 million allocated to maintain infrastructure at the failing South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant. .

In related action, supervisors unanimously approved maintaining a local state of emergency related to the border sewage crisis, and also approved increased collaboration with researchers.

Supervisors first declared a state of emergency in June 2023, which allows the county to access state and federal resources “to mitigate the harmful effects of transboundary pollution,” according to Vargas’ office.