County Supervisor Lawson-Remer Questions EPA Decision Ahead of Wednesday Hearing

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News Date
01/08/25
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Vice Chair Terra Lawson-Remer released the following statement today in response to a letter from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency notifying San Diego regional leaders that it will not further assess the Tijuana River Valley for use of its “Superfund” tool, which is used by the EPA to clean up hazardous waste in communities across the nation. 

The County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to discuss this issue at its 9 a.m. meeting tomorrow, January 8 (Item 3 on the agenda). Supervisors will hear updates from staff and discuss options to unlock state and federal funds for toxic remediation cleanup in the Tijuana River Valley.

“The people of our region are desperate for relief from the sewage and trash flowing across our border, so I am extremely disappointed the Environmental Protection Agency will not even conduct a site assessment of the Tijuana River Valley to see if it qualifies for the federal government’s hazardous waste Superfund program.

It is troubling that the EPA didn’t even visit the site and instead based its decision on samples collected years ago — when the reality is that things have gotten much worse since then. Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

We do appreciate recent efforts by the federal government, such as funding approved by Congress and data collection being conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, as well as cooperation offered by the EPA in general. We will continue to work with all relevant agencies on this issue and explore other avenues to unlock state and federal funding, but it’s clear that the severity of this environmental nightmare still isn’t fully sinking in.

In its letter, the EPA wrote that the risk posed by the Tijuana River Valley isn’t high enough. With hazardous waste closing beaches for over 1,000 days, a record number of air pollution complaints being filed by residents, and the CDC now getting involved, my question is: how much sicker do San Diegans need to get before this is treated as the crisis that it so obviously is?”

Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer announced on October 8, 2024, that she was pursuing a Superfund designation from the EPA and submitted a petition with regional colleagues, including Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre, National City City Councilmember Marcus Bush and Mayor Ron Morrison, and Chair of the Air Pollution Control District Jack Shu.

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), more commonly known as Superfund, was enacted by Congress in 1980. It is a tool the EPA uses to clean up hazardous waste sites in the United States. Superfund designation provides funding to clean-up pollution, hold responsible parties accountable, while centering communities in the process. 

Superfund is designed to address toxic waste, and the Tijuana River Valley has endured 80 years of wastewater and trash that includes many known toxic substances, making it a strong candidate for Superfund designation. 

Other Superfund sites around the country have many similarities to the Tijuana River Valley: toxic waste characteristics, hazardous substances and nearby neighborhoods and sensitive environments. 

Similar examples include: 

  • Gowanus Canal, New York City (2010 Superfund Designation): This canal received just 1/10 of the amount of raw sewage that flows through the Tijuana River. It’s also located in an area that is heavily populated by more than 100,000 residents. 
  • Upper Columbia River, Washington/Canada (2024 Superfund Designation): Like the Tijuana River Valley, this site has cross border pollution, where waste from a smelter in Canada flowed down stream and across the border to contaminate communities. 
  • Lower Duwamish Waterway, Seattle (2021 Superfund Designation): Like the Tijuana River Valley, this is where saltwater and freshwater mix; and there are sensitive environments and habitats 

Read The Full EPA Report Here