San Diego County Approves $1.8 Million for River Sewage Treatment Facility Planning

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 1, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors in California passed the Tijuana River Polluted Water Interception and Treatment Plan by a vote of 4 to 1, approving $1.8 million for the first phase of project development and engineering analysis. The County proposes to build a treatment plant and supporting facilities on the U.S. side of the U.S.-Mexico border to intercept and treat polluted water entering the lower Tijuana River.

The initial funding comes from the County's prior-year unassigned general fund balance and will be transferred to the Department of Public Works, which will manage the study using existing on-call consulting service contracts. The scope of work includes comparing engineering alternatives, determining treatment requirements, evaluating candidate sites and land ownership, identifying permits, estimating construction and operating costs, and studying financing and operating models.

Within 18 months, the first phase is expected to submit a preferred alternative analysis to the Board of Supervisors for selection of a project to move into preliminary design. The study will reference the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2021 river interception study and evaluate technical arrangements such as conveyance, treatment, ocean discharge, and resource recovery.

The project is planned to advance in three phases. After the Board selects an alternative, the second phase will conduct preliminary engineering design and financing strategy studies; the third phase will advance final design, environmental review, permitting, and construction, involving approvals from agencies such as the regional water quality control board, the California Coastal Commission, and the International Boundary and Water Commission. Subsequent design, construction, and long-term operation will still require dedicated revenue sources and funding partnerships.

The existing South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant receives sewage collected in Mexico and conveyed to the facility; this County-level plan targets polluted flows within the Tijuana River channel. The Board of Supervisors also converted the existing ad hoc sewage crisis committee into a standing committee to continuously oversee implementation of each project phase.