Residents near the Tijuana River Valley have been informed of an upcoming health assessment related to ongoing concerns over border sewage.
The study will be conducted by San Diego County and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from Oct. 17-19.
Materials were distributed to over 6,000 homes last Thursday to give notice of the survey, known as Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER).
The flow of untreated sewage, sediment and trash in the river valley has long had a variety of worrisome impacts, from damaging habitats to causing beach closures. Concerns have increased in recent months due to the river swelling from rainfall and infrastructure failures on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.
This is the first time that such an assessment, focused on pollution, has been undertaken in the area, according to Mark Beatty, assistant medical director of epidemiology and immunization services for the county.
“It’s a way of doing a community assessment when there’s been a situation like an emergency – to get a representative number of households surveyed to see what their needs are,” Beatty said.
The assessment includes interviews to determine if the sewage has affected the overall health of anyone in a given household, or had an impact on their property, ability to work, income and family life, according to Tim McClain with the county’s Health & Human Services Agency.
Homes in the area are randomly selected for the survey. Participation is voluntary and individuals will be interviewed in-person. Results will be kept anonymous.
CDC sampling, McClain said, is designed to reflect a broad representation, across various demographics, of the people who live in affected areas.
County officials are encouraging community members to participate to help leaders respond better to disasters and share resources where they are needed.
“Please talk to them (CDC); we want you to talk and be honest with them,” McClain said. “We’re not going to influence your answers. From (the responses), we’ll know what resources are needed. Right now, we don’t know.”
For more details about the county’s public health response and CASPER, visit the South Region Health Concerns page on the county’s website.
