Protection for Tijuana Estuary

  • Length: 4:47 minutes (4.38 MB)
  • Format: Mono 44kHz 128Kbps (CBR)

The Tijuana River Estuary is home to six endangered species, and it is one of the few salt marshes remaining in Southern California, where more than 90% of wetland habitat has been lost to development. This unique and fragile ecosystem is threatened by pollution and trash coming from Terrazas de San Bernardo, a community of squatters on the Mexican side of the estuary. San Bernardo's 10,000 residents live in makeshift dwellings without running water or electricity. The unsanitary conditions worsen every rain season, when mudslides carry trash and untreated waste water right thru the Estuary into the open sea. Now, citizens, universities, and non-profits from both sides of the border are joining forces with San Bernardo residents to create a solution for health hazards, floods, and pollution in the area. Mariana Martinez and Alonso Rivera report.