What happens when a community’s beaches are closed for more than 1,270 days, not because of a natural disaster, but because of relentless waves of sewage pollution crossing the border? For the people of Imperial Beach and South San Diego, this isn’t a hypothetical—it’s their daily reality.
Since 2018, over 100 billion gallons of untreated sewage, industrial waste, and urban runoff have surged from Mexico into California, according to the International Boundary and Water Commission. The result? More than 1,270 days of beach closures, devastated tourism, and a mounting public health crisis. As Assemblymember David Alvarez puts it, “Enough is enough. Border communities like Imperial Beach, San Ysidro and Calexico should not be treated as sacrifice zones. This is not just a water issue—study upon study have found that it is a public health emergency, which demands a national response,” he told Newsweek.
The scale of the problem is staggering. Research from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography linked 34,000 annual illnesses to water quality pollution along the Imperial Beach coastline. And it’s not just swimmers at risk—Scripps found that up to 76 percent of bacteria in the city’s air can be traced to transboundary flow pollution. That means simply breathing the air or walking down the street can put residents at risk. “People are getting sick just by breathing the air as they go to work, school, and even trying to enjoy their own backyards,” the Surfrider Foundation reports.
The contamination isn’t just a nuisance—it’s a threat to vulnerable groups like children, seniors, outdoor workers, and even first responders. Lifeguards, Navy personnel, and Border Patrol agents have reported illnesses, with some contracting flesh-eating bacteria after entering toxic water. According to a San Diego State University report, dangerous pathogens, including antibiotic-resistant bacteria, have been found in the polluted waters and soils, raising the stakes for everyone living and working near the border.
Amid this crisis, California lawmakers unanimously advanced Assembly Joint Resolution 16 (AJR 16), calling on President Donald Trump to declare a national emergency. The resolution’s demands are clear: full funding for the EPA’s infrastructure plan to stop sewage spills at the source, a national emergency declaration to unlock federal resources, and long-term support for wastewater treatment facilities. The goal? Immediate action to end the cycle of beach closures and restore safe, accessible coastlines for all.
But the challenge is bigger than just one community. The International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), tasked with managing water and pollution along the US-Mexico border, has documented the sheer scale of the crisis and is working on infrastructure upgrades. However, deferred maintenance and funding gaps have slowed progress, with $350 million in federal funds now redirected just to repair existing facilities, according to the Surfrider Foundation.
Legal experts point out that a federal emergency declaration could streamline funding and interagency coordination, bypassing years of bureaucratic delays. As Sarah Davidson of Surfrider puts it, “President Biden has the authority to declare an emergency whenever he deems public health and safety in his jurisdictions to be threatened. His response to Tropical Storm Hilary, merely weeks ago, was swift, thorough, and effective. Unfortunately, residents in Imperial Beach and nearby communities are living with a tropical storm of toxic waste every day.”
Meanwhile, local leaders like Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre continue to push for more robust monitoring and intervention, calling the crisis an environmental justice issue that disproportionately impacts communities with fewer resources. “The persistent health impacts greatly reduce the quality of life for the community,” Aguirre told SDSU News.
As the California Assembly prepares for a full vote on AJR 16, the call for urgent, coordinated federal action grows louder. The voices of over 3,200 residents, local officials, and advocates echo a single message: border communities deserve clean water, healthy air, and the right to enjoy their own backyards without fear.
