CHULA VISTA, Calif. (KGTV) — ABC 10News has been covering the South Bay sewage crisis for years, and now more air quality monitors could be headed to the area, along with a new tool to track air quality.
The San Diego County Air Pollution Control Board released a dashboard this week to make it easier to access information from air quality monitors. We’ve covered the previous two at the San Ysidro Fire Department and Berry Elementary School in Imperial Beach.
Now regulators want to install an additional air quality monitor in Imperial Beach.
The San Diego County Air Pollution Control Board says it wants to focus on hydrogen sulfide, one of the chemicals released by the sewage overflow. Officials say it’s one of the key culprits for the sewage stink.
It’s a colorless gas with a strong, rotten egg-like odor that many South Bay residents know all too well. When too much hydrogen sulfide enters the air, it can cause symptoms like dizziness and nausea.
We were there when the CDC surveyed households in the South Bay about the health impacts of the sewage.
Then, we questioned leaders after a groundbreaking on repairs and expansions at the International Wastewater Treatment Plant. They told us the project will take an estimated $400 million in federal funding, but local leaders say that’s not enough.
The City of San Diego, the county, Imperial Beach and now Chula Vista have all declared a state of emergency over the issue.
South Bay residents say solutions can’t come soon enough, since they deal with this problem every day.
“I’m sick. Rather than enjoying my home that I raised my children in, out in my yard with barbecues and so forth, I can’t go out there,” said Victoria Urtusun, who has lived in the South Bay for decades. “It’s a shame, it’s pathetic.”
The county is holding a meeting about air quality guidance Thursday afternoon. On the agenda, the county outlines plans to invest millions more in programs to fight the sewage.
Leaders also want to ask the governor and president to declare states of emergency.
You can click here to see the county’s new air quality dashboard.
