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Playas de Rosarito, Baja California: Wastewater collection Improvement Projects

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Project Location and Description

EPA is considering authorizing the award of a Border Environment Infrastructure Fund (BEIF) grant to the Comisión Estatal de Servicios Públicos de Tijuana (CESPT), the local utility for the cities of Tijuana and Playas de Rosarito, for construction of wastewater collection lines to serve existing communities in Playas De Rosarito that lack adequate wastewater disposal. Playas de Rosarito, a municipality comprised of more than 73,000 people, is located on the Pacific coast south of Tijuana, approximately 18 miles south of the U.S.-Mexico border.

Purpose and Need for the Proposed Action

The purpose of the proposed action is to address the environmental and public health risks associated with inadequate collection, treatment and disposal of wastewater. The proposed action will protect public health by providing appropriate wastewater collection to 20,851 residents that rely on latrines or open ditches for wastewater disposal.  The proposed action consists of extending the wastewater collection systems to communities within the municipality of Playas de Rosarito that currently lack access to these services. The project consists of installing about 38 miles (57,000 meters) of wastewater collection (sewer) lines ranging from 8 to 14 inches (20 to 38 centimeters) in diameter.  Raw wastewater generated by these communities is estimated at 1.39 million gallons per day (60.7 liters per second).  All wastewater collected by the new sewer lines will be treated at the existing Rosarito and Rosarito Norte wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs).  These WWTPs provide secondary treatment prior to discharge to the Pacific Ocean.  The proposed action will significantly reduce or eliminate the use of inadequate wastewater disposal practices by providing collection service and conveying flows to existing wastewater treatment plants, resulting in improved environmental and sanitation conditions.

EPA's involvement in the Rosarito, Baja California project is part of a national commitment to improve environmental conditions along the U.S.-Mexico border. EPA participates in the development and implementation of water supply and wastewater infrastructure projects in coordination with the Border Environment Cooperation Commission (BECC) and the North American Development Bank (NADBank) Exiting EPA (disclaimer).BECC is responsible for certifying projects so that they comply with sound technical, environmental, financial, and public participation principles. NADBank administers the BEIF grants for projects that have been certified by BECC and approved by EPA.

Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), EPA has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) that analyzes the potential transboundary environmental impacts of the proposed action.  After considering a wide range of regulatory, environmental (both natural and human) and socio-economic factors, the EA did not identify any significant impacts to the environment that would result from the implementation of the proposed wastewater collection system improvements.  The EA and Finding of No Significant Impact (FNSI) are being made available for public review for a 30-day comment period that ends on September 27, 2006.  Interested persons, including those who disagree with this proposal, may submit written comments to EPA Region 9. 

To view the EA or FNSI, please click on the links below.

Contact Information

For further information about these documents, contact:

Susan Cox
U.S. EPA Region 9 (WTR-4)
75 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA  94105
Phone:  (415) 972-3555
Fax: (415) 947-3537
Email:  cox.susan@epa.gov

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