For South Bay residents coping with the Tijuana sewage crisis, the question remains: Why is this still happening?
Tears welled in former Imperial Beach mayor Serge Dedina‘s eyes as he reflected on what the South Bay city — his childhood home — has lost.
“All of these great efforts are happening, but it’s not enough,” he said. “There needs to be an impact.”
An Imperial Beach lifeguard places a beach closure notice. (File photo courtesy of OnScene.TV)Experts recently joined Dedina to break down how the decades-long public health and environmental disaster came about, and what should happen next, during a San Diego World Affairs Council panel at UC San Diego Extended Studies.
For Dedina, the measure of progress isn’t how many agreements are signed, funds allocated or treatment plants upgraded, but whether South Bay residents can safely return to their beaches.
Dedina made his point as part of the July 11 discussion, which came amid renewed political attention on border pollution. Last month, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced $46 million in state funding to address cross-border contamination, all while state officials continue pressuring the federal government to repair key infrastructure.
The panel brought together leaders from conservation, business, science and policy circles with differing views on potential solutions. Dedina offered an environmental perspective alongside San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce vice president Kenia Zamarripa, Tijuana Verde director Hernando Durán Cabrera and University of San Diego professor Sarah Federman. Carl Nettleton, founder of OpenOceans, moderated the discussion.
Each speaker agreed, however, that a lasting solution requires a binational effort strong enough to survive political turnover, ensuring sustained effort and progress to re-open every beach.
Thus far, as experts and residents alike can attest, “Everybody talks about this problem, but nobody has a solution,” Durán Cabrera said.
While much of the panel discussion focused on the environment and policy, Zamarripa pointed out that the crisis is a major economic and trade liability as well.
Severe sewage pollution causes hazardous gases to bubble up from the Tijuana River. (Photo by Thomas Murphy/Times of San Diego)Businesses considering expanding into the San Diego region see the South Bay as risky, she said, arguing the pollution has undermined the region’s long-term growth and stability, limiting investment and opportunities for cross-border collaborations.
Instead of creating a whole new organization, she called for improvements in existing systems and regular updates about long-term planning.
“We’re seeing this momentum, and I don’t want to lose it,” she said. “There’s two presidents talking about it, we’ve never had that before,” referring to a 2025 agreement between the U.S. and Mexico to eliminate pollution at the border.
While Zamarripa focused on the political and economic reasons to act, Durán Cabrera explained why Tijuana’s system continues to fail.
Why is this still happening?
Severely polluted water flows through the Tijuana River near the Saturn Boulevard hotspot. (File photo by Thomas Murphy/Times of San Diego)This crisis stems from a shared watershed, where rainfall and runoff from both countries drain into the Tijuana River, carrying pollutants toward the Pacific Ocean. Tijuana’s wastewater system depends on aging pumps and treatment facilities, and when those systems fail or overflow, untreated sewage heads north.
Up to 50 million gallons of contaminated flow crosses the border each day, carrying trash, sewage and chemical pollutants with it, according to American Rivers.
Durán Cabrera argued that the solution doesn’t require rebuilding the struggling system. Instead, he said, it is best to focus on the key pumps and treatment plants that determine whether wastewater reaches the United States.
He explained that any plan will require consistent management and clear direction, pointing to the constantly changing leadership of Tijuana’s wastewater management — churning through 15 directors in 12 years, following Durán Cabrera’s departure from the Comisión Estatal de Servicios Públicos de Tijuana in October 2013.
This lack of continuity, he argued, prevents long-term planning and improvement, meaning officials will only ever address the symptoms and not the root cause of the crisis.
Durán Cabrera proposed creating a binational working group with clear, consistent goals and transparency. Making performance metrics publicly available would enable residents to monitor if the treatment system is operating properly and improving over time.
During a recent visit to the Tijuana River, Durán Cabrera was encouraged to see no wastewater flowing north, a sign that improvement is possible. He said he remains optimistic, despite the systemic challenges in Tijuana.
Dedina agreed, but stressed that true success is not improved management, but real world impact — it’s “zero days of beach closure” and contaminant-free communities.
He argued that development on the hillsides above Playas de Tijuana sent sand into the watershed, contributing to decades of sediment buildup which, Dedina said, has left the Tijuana River Estuary about 90% filled with sediment. This infill traps pollutants in the estuary longer while degrading the sensitive habitat.
Problematic pollutants
Sarah Federman, of USD, took a different approach than others on the panel, choosing to “look upstream” to identify industrial pollutants entering the watershed.
While wastewater is at the center of the crisis, Federman said scientists still don’t understand how the mix of chemical contaminants interact inside the human body, making the pollution’s long-term health effects difficult to predict.
“We know what each of these chemicals can do to our bodies, but we don’t know what the compounds can do when they all get together,” she said. “It’s so difficult for science to say ‘this chemical caused this.’ Then we get these health conditions, and it’s like ‘you’re sick and you have to deal with it.’ There’s no accountability.”
Federman teaches the Tijuana Watershed Social Action class at the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego, where students trace chemical contaminants back to Mexican and American industries and businesses. Federman hopes scientists and the business community will work together to identify polluters and encourage greater accountability.
Until researchers know exactly how these chemicals are entering the watershed, Federman said, solving the sewage crisis will not just require strengthening the system, but tracing the pollution to its source and holding those responsible accountable.
Although panelists differed on where solutions should start — with infrastructure, policy, partnerships or scientific research — they agreed the region cannot afford more temporary fixes. Now, the challenge will be maintaining political momentum long enough to make a lasting impact.
“Nine years ago, we didn’t think about this as a top priority for the region; I think everyone agrees that this is a priority now,” Durán Cabrera said. “Instead of thinking of who’s going to be leading and who plays the bigger role, let’s all lead together and find the same solutions.”
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