Mayor Paloma Aguirre told the Imperial Beach City Council on June 4 that she has submitted a five-point sewage action plan to San Diego County asking for funding and urgent infrastructure work to address ongoing pollution from the Tijuana River.

The request, Aguirre said, asks county leaders to fund removal of a “hot spot” emitting toxic gases, an economic-impact study tied to the city’s prior boil-water advisory, and an epidemiological study to examine whether illnesses reported at local clinics are linked to pollutants. “Most importantly, what we need to do is remove the hot spot where all of the toxic gases are being emanated,” Mayor Paloma Aguirre said.

Why it matters: Imperial Beach has repeatedly raised the cross‑border sewage issue as a public-health and economic problem that affects beaches, local businesses and residents’ health. The mayor said she sought county support after a Tijuana River Valley tour that included U.S. Senator Cory Booker and that Acting Chair Tara Lawson‑Reimer agreed to move the city’s budget request forward within the county process.

What was said and done
- Aguirre described the city’s outreach to multiple levels of government and said she delivered a five‑point budget request to the county on June 2; she told council that the county acting chair would carry the request forward in a budget change request.
- “As you all know, our district is leaderless right now. District 1 does not have representation. So I'm grateful to her for, taking this request and considering it in their budget,” Aguirre said.
- The mayor also said Senator Cory Booker visited the Tijuana River Valley to raise federal attention to the sewage crisis.

Public comment and local response
- During public comment, speakers tied local health and economic concerns to cross‑border pollution. A resident noted testing gaps at a Naval Landing Field underground storage‑tank cleanup and urged the council to press the State Water Board to keep the case open until additional sampling is completed.
- Aguirre repeated council priorities: infrastructure to remove hazardous “hot spots,” an economic impact study tied to the earlier boil‑water advisory, and an epidemiological study of local clinic case reports. She said those studies are meant to support further funding requests at county, state and federal levels.

Where this stands administratively
- Aguirre said she has sent the five‑point request to county staff and that Acting Chair Tara Lawson‑Reimer would consider it in an upcoming budget change request. No county funding was approved at the June 4 council meeting; the mayor said the city would continue to pursue assistance.

Context and limits
- The mayor noted that the treatment‑plant timeline has accelerated under federal attention, but that “the main source of pollution continues to be the river itself.” She framed the city’s requests as seeking multiple forms of assistance (remediation, economic analysis and health study) rather than as a single short‑term fix.

Next steps
- The city will continue advocacy at the county and federal level. Mayor Aguirre said the county’s acting chair will move the city’s request forward for consideration. The council did not adopt a new formal resolution at this meeting specific to the five‑point request; the mayor has been pursuing intergovernmental advocacy and will report back as additional responses or funding decisions arrive.