Toxic Tide: South Bay delegation knocks on Congressional doors, looking for $310M

They walked into office after office in the halls of Congress looking for $310 million.

The South Bay delegation led by Imperial Beach mayor Paloma Aguirre met with several members of the House of Representatives Monday, hoping to gain their support for a budget item proposed by President Joe Biden to fund the remaining repairs at the broken South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant, in San Ysidro.

“It's how we get attention to the issue," Aguirre said. "We're basically on the other side of the country:"

Aguirre was joined by Chula Vista mayor John McCann, Coronado city councilman John Duncan, two members of the Imperial Beach city administration and an Imperial Beach resident.

Monday, the delegation met with Rep. Ken Calvert (CA-41), Rep. Steny Hoyer (MD-5), and the senior policy advisor for Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. They asked all of them for support for a $310 million included by President Joe Biden in his supplemental budget. It needs congressional approval.

That $310 million would be in addition to more than $300 million awarded by Congress in 2022 to repair and expand the treatment plant that’s been neglected for years.

“We need the second $300 million," Duncan said. "Otherwise, I'm not sure it will ever be built."

“That's going to have to be found at the federal government level,” McCann added.

The delegation is fighting for the money because the pollution crisis at the border continues to get worse. As highlighted in the NBC 7 news special Toxic Tide: The Pollution Crisis at the Border, billions of gallons of raw sewage from Tijuana has flowed into San Diego County for years. It affects the health of hundreds of thousands of people, strangles the economy and destroys the environment on both sides of the border.

“It is a disaster," McCann said. "It is economically affecting the entire South County.”

“Is it frustrating?" Aguirre asked. "Yes. But is it necessary? Absolutely."

Johnson’s policy advisor admitted getting that much money out of Congress is always tough, especially when every legislator is fighting for their communities.

“It's just so essential," Duncan said. "We have to get this money. It affects the entire region."

California Gov. Gavin Newsom tried his best to help Monday, penning a letter to Congressional leaders in which he asked them to support the $310 million for the South Bay plant.

"It is the federal government's responsibility to complete the capital improvements to the facility that are required to stop the ongoing harmful discharges into the marine environment that are impacting public health, the local econom, and ecosystems and species in coastal communities," Newsom wrote. "Southern California communities have suffered from this crisis for far too long, impacting the lives and livelihoods of tens of thousands of people and U.S. Navy SEAL special operation forces who train in those waters.

"Congress must act quickly to approve the president's proposal and provide this much-needed, urgent funding," Newsom wrote.

The South Bay delegation has several more meetings scheduled for Tuesday, including a meeting with White House staff.