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Imperial County-Mexicali Emergency Response Plan
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Imperial County-Mexicali Emergency Response Plan
The Imperial County-Mexicali Emergency Response Plan, along with streamlining emergency response, notification and communication efforts, also guarantees cooperation among all levels of emergency response personnel. Along with the reducing risks associated with hazardous materials, the plan calls for necessary training, a crucial element in emergency response. Personnel will conduct emergency response “real life” exercises to ensure comprehensive and cohesive emergency response on both sides of the border.
"With the Imperial County-Mexicali Emergency Response Plan in place, communities on both sides of the border will now be safer and better equipped to handle potential chemical releases," said Wayne Nastri, Regional Administrator, U.S. EPA.
Attending the event were high-ranking representatives from the US and Mexico, including: Wally Leimgruber, Board of Supervisors, Imperial County, Calif ; Mayor Samuel Ramos Flores of the City of Mexicali; Maria de Lourdes Cordero Zamora, Civil Protection of Mexico; Raymundo Noriega, Baja California Civil Protection; Fred Nippins, Fire Chief/OES Coordinator, Imperial County and representing the EPA, Lauren Volpini.
The EPA has numerous environmental programs along the US – Mexico border, many of which are featured in this web site.
Editor's note: As part of the Border 2012 binational environmental program, representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Mexican environmental agency SEMARNAT, and state and local officials met for the 2005 National Coordinators' meeting held March 8-10 at the Westward Look Resort in Tucson, Ariz. to report on accomplishments and priorities along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The U.S.-Mexico border region is one of the most dynamic in the world. It includes large deserts, numerous mountain ranges, rivers, wetlands, large estuaries, and shared aquifers. It also has various climates, a remarkable biological diversity, including many rare and native species, and national parks and protected areas.
The border region extends more than 2,000 miles from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean, and 62.5 miles on each side of the international border. In the last 20 years, population has grown rapidly in the border region to more than 11.8 million people, and is expected to reach 19.4 million by 2020.
While its people share natural resources like water and air, the border region is characterized by many social, economic, and political contrasts. Rapid population growth in urban areas has resulted in many environmental issues. Border residents suffer disproportionately from many environmental health problems, including water-borne diseases and respiratory problems.
Border Challenges
Ten years ago, the community of Chilpancingo in Tijuana, Mexico struggled with tons of hazardous waste left behind by an abandoned lead smelter and battery recycling facility. Lead-contaminated soils, telephone cable sheathing, lead oxide, used industrial and automotive batteries, lead scrap, among other things were left behind at the Metales y Derivados facility without a plan to clean it up.
In June 2004, EPA collaborated with Mexico to remove over 300 tons of hazardous waste from the abandoned Tijuana recycling facility. Hazardous waste was moved to a more confined area, site accessibility was strengthened, and health and safety practices were established to protect workers and the community. Plans are also in place to remove an additional 2,000 tons of hazardous waste in 2005, and to evaluate long-term cleanup plans.
Three years ago, water sources for the Tohono O’Odham border tribe were chlorinated by hand once per month. Elevated storage tanks were chlorinated only once every 3 months because of the risk of climbing the tanks and limited resources.
As a result of the infrequent chlorination, there were many positive total coliform and fecal coliform results in the water systems. The documented rate of communicable diseases on the reservation exceeded the national average by four times for gastroenteritis diarrhea, five times for dysentery, 14 times for infectious hepatitis, 22 times for tuberculosis, and 32 times for ectoparasitic infestation. Through an EPA $184,405 grant, 6,000 homes on the Tohono O’odham Nation now have a safer supply of water. Over 70 water sources on the reservation now have continuous chlorination units.
EPA Assists Border Communities
As part of the Border 2012 program, the U.S. EPA recently awarded $234,000 in grants to fund six environmental projects along California's U.S.-Mexico border, and include improvements in erosion control and storm water management in Los Laureles Canyon and the Tijuana River National Estuarine, a training program for Tijuana-based first responders, and an extensive educational outreach program to area families and high school educators concerned about air quality, encouraging residents not to burn tires in Imperial Valley and Mexicali.
The EPA also awarded $284,625 to fund nine projects along Arizona's U.S.-Mexico border that include a pilot program aimed at collecting household hazardous waste from maquiladoras employees, improving a potable water system on the Tohono O'odham Nation, and reducing children's exposure to environmental contaminants-- particularly lead and pesticides -- and environmental asthma triggers.
In addition, EPA is contributing up to $13 million in Border Environment Infrastructure Funds to the Mexicali II wastewater treatment project. This project will remove up to 20 million gallons of raw sewage per day from the New River, a binational river that originates in Mexicali, Baja California and ends at the Salton Sea on Imperial Valley, Calif.
To date, EPA has contributed approximately $475 million to over 50 water and wastewater projects along the U.S.-Mexico border, providing access to potable water and sanitary treatment systems for some 6.5 million area residents.