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San Diego County officials presented preliminary findings Tuesday from a long-awaited study that estimates the Tijuana River sewage and pollution crisis costs the regional economy between $125.6 million and $503.5 million annually, with unmitigated losses potentially reaching $7.9 billion over 20 years.
The Board of Supervisors received the draft report during its regular meeting, though no action was required. The board directed the county’s chief administrative officer in September 2025 to commission the study, which was ultimately awarded to the consulting firm ECOnorthwest.
Supervisor Paloma Aguirre said the findings will bolster the county’s case for outside intervention and aid in this crisis.
“It is absolutely crucial that we present this data that we have, that we collect this data, that we analyze it and that we use it to present it to the state and federal partners and Mexico as well to hold them accountable to say that we cannot continue doing this,” Aguirre said. “We cannot continue this crisis to go unaddressed because close to $8 billion, that’s disaster level numbers.”
The Tijuana River sewage and pollution crisis stems from decades of un...