{"id":359034,"date":"2026-06-13T07:17:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T07:17:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/359034\/"},"modified":"2026-06-13T07:17:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T07:17:14","slug":"new-steps-toward-reducing-tijuana-river-valley-pollution-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/359034\/","title":{"rendered":"New Steps toward Reducing Tijuana River Valley Pollution\u00a0\u00a0 | News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\tReading Time:   2 minutes<\/p>\n<p>San Diego County received two major boosts this week in its efforts to reduce pollution in the Tijuana River Valley:\u00a0\u00a0a new $46 million state grant program and a California Coastal Commission-approved project that will help cut harmful gases near the Saturn Boulevard crossing.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>$46 Million in State Grants Now\u00a0Available\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The State Water Resources Control Board has opened applications for a $46 million grant program to improve water quality and reduce pollution in the Tijuana River Valley and the New River. <\/p>\n<p>Both\u00a0waterways\u00a0carry sewage,\u00a0trash\u00a0and other waste from Mexico into the United States, creating health risks for\u00a0communities\u00a0in South San Diego County and Imperial County.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Priority will go to projects\u00a0that reduce bacteria, trash,\u00a0emissions\u00a0and other pollutants.\u00a0Funding is\u00a0also\u00a0available for work that\u00a0improves public health, restores natural\u00a0areas\u00a0or manages sediment. At least one project from each river will\u00a0receive funding.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Planning grants\u00a0are available\u00a0for\u00a0up to $750,000. Construction grants can\u00a0reach\u00a0$10 million, and in some cases up to $20 million. The\u00a0program is funded through\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.waterboards.ca.gov\/water_issues\/programs\/grants_loans\/swgp\/docs\/prop-4-us-mexico-border-guidelines-clean.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Proposition 4<\/a>, approved by California voters in 2024.\u00a0Applications\u00a0are open\u00a0from June 11 through August 31,\u00a0with\u00a0a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/waterboards.ca.gov\/water_issues\/programs\/grants_loans\/swgp\/prop4\/us-mexico-border\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">webinar\u00a0planned to\u00a0help applicants<\/a>\u00a0navigate\u00a0the process.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Coastal Commission Approves Temporary Culvert Fix to Cut Toxic Gas\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.coastal.ca.gov\/meetings\/agenda\/#\/2026\/6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">California Coastal Commission<\/a>\u00a0also approved a\u00a0County\u00a0project to temporarily extend two culvert pipes at the Saturn Boulevard crossing.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Currently, the\u00a0culverts release water about six feet above the riverbed, creating\u00a0\u00a0 splashing and turbulence\u00a0that\u00a0increases\u00a0the release of hydrogen sulfide gas\u2014known for its\u00a0rotten egg\u00a0smell\u00a0and\u00a0health risks.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The\u00a0approved project\u00a0extends\u00a0the\u00a0pipes\u00a0so water is\u00a0discharged\u00a0below the surface, which should significantly reduce\u00a0pathogens and\u00a0gas emissions\u00a0at the\u00a0site.\u00a0Pipe\u00a0caps\u00a0will help\u00a0regulate\u00a0flow, and anchors and riprap (rock material) will keep the\u00a0system stable.\u00a0Work will remain within\u00a0existing\u00a0disturbed\u00a0areas\u00a0to protect wildlife.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The Commission approved the project on June 10 with conditions to safeguard sensitive plants and animals, prevent water pollution during construction and maintain public access along Saturn Boulevard, part of the California Coastal Trail.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>This\u00a0short-term\u00a0project\u00a0will help\u00a0improve air quality for nearby neighborhoods while\u00a0longer term\u00a0solutions are being developed.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Together, these actions show meaningful progress in addressing Tijuana River Valley pollution. While the work ahead remains, San Diego County residents can feel encouraged that new funding, improved infrastructure and continued state support are helping move the region toward cleaner water and healthier communities. \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Reading Time: 2 minutes San Diego County received two major boosts this week in its efforts to reduce&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":359035,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[1570,146128,18913,74,76,75,1786,55411],"class_list":["post-359034","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-diego","tag-health","tag-mexico-sewage","tag-pollution","tag-san-diego","tag-san-diego-headlines","tag-san-diego-news","tag-sewage","tag-tijuana-river"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/359034","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=359034"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/359034\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/359035"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=359034"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=359034"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=359034"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}