Trump's EPA chief headed to San Diego to see Tijuana sewage crisis
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The head of the EPA is coming to the San Diego border to get a firsthand look at the ongoing Tijuana sewage crisis.
Why it matters: The announcement follows months of back-and-forth between local officials and the federal government over designating the Tijuana River Valley a Superfund site which would unlock EPA assistance in dealing with the crisis.
Driving the news: Lee Zeldin, President Trump's new EPA administrator, wrote on X Tuesday that he's coming in the next few weeks to the border "where disgusting Mexican sewage is harming our precious environment in the United States."
- He said Mexico must quickly implement permanent solutions to the decades-long problem.
State of play: Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre, who is currently running for county supervisor where her role in the sewage crisis has been central to her campaign and attacks against her, praised Zeldin's announcement.
- "We need a federal state of emergency, immediate resources to stop the sewage flows and yes, more pressure on Mexico to take action on their side of the border - and I intend to tell Administrator Zeldin all that and more," she wrote in a statement.
Flashback: In November, County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer submitted a letter to the federal government asking it to grant Superfund status, in hopes the EPA would determine if the area is contaminated and foot the bill for a clean up.
- The agency denied the request in January, arguing a preliminary inspection wasn't warranted because concentrations of pollutants previously found there were below acceptable limits.
- Aguirre sent a letter last month asking Zeldin to reconsider, which was quickly rejected.
Between the lines: Stopping or stemming the steady flow of sewage into the Pacific Ocean has often focused on fixing and upgrading a wastewater treatment plant on the U.S. side of the border that is overwhelmed with untreated waste from Tijuana.
- Zeldin was pressed on the crisis by California Sen. Adam Schiff during his confirmation hearings.
- But rather than treat the crisis as a question of federal funding, Zeldin's statement suggests the Trump administration may instead approach it as another demand on Mexico.