What are the health effects of Tijuana River sewage? New proposal aims to find out
By City News Service | Read full article at NBC 7
San Diego County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer Monday detailed a policy intended to get the county Health and Human Services Agency to examine health impacts of the Tijuana River sewage crisis on South Bay residents.
Along with leaders from Imperial Beach and Coronado, Lawson-Remer explained how she wants to see increased data collection beyond those coming into direct contact with polluted ocean water. Bacteria from raw sewage flowing from the watershed into the ocean can become aerosolized and impact those further inland, studies by the Scripps Institute of Oceanography suggest.
The Board of Supervisors will consider the policy at its regular Tuesday meeting.
"Our county has been leading the fight in partnership with our local cities to clean up the Tijuana River sewage crisis, and this policy will empower our health experts to make more health data available and expand the way we respond to health threats," said Lawson-Remer, vice chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. "We've been demanding the state and federal government take action to protect public health and clean up local beaches and that has yielded some financial investments for improvements, and if the board approves this policy Tuesday, it reinforces our commitment to protecting our beaches, bays and coastlines."