Institute for Regional Studies of the Californias
Institute for Regional Studies of the Californias| Tijuana, Basic Information Page 7 | ||
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but collection is slightly less than that. As a result, trash is often burned, particularly in outlying poor colonias. Collected waste is deposited in a privately operated landfill. The municipality provides collection service in the residential and commercial areas of the city. Private companies provide service for some 40 percent of business and industry in the municipality. The City of San Diego and the Municipality of Tijuana recently cooperated on an innovative program to develop a binational market for recyclable materials. Known as Border Waste Wi$e, this program resulted in increased recycling of solid waste at about 30 maquiladoras. Not only will this program develop a regional industry and create jobs, but it will measurably decrease the amount of materials going into landfills in both cities. IV. Air Pollution. Uncontrolled burning, unpaved streets (including fecal dust in unsewered areas), leaded fuel, poor vehicle maintenance, and an older vehicle fleet are particular problems for Tijuana. Long lines of idling vehicles at the border, due in part to drug interdiction policies of the U.S. Customs Service, contribute to the air pollution problem. Uncontrolled use of solvents in many manufacturing processes, especially the furniture industry, contributes to the contamination of the regional air shed. Finally, transportation of polluted air south from Los Angeles to San Diego and Tijuana is a serious problem and accounts for a large percentage of the days that San Diego is not in compliance with U.S. federal standards. In terms of stationary sources of air pollution, the Rosarito thermoelectric plant is the greatest concern. It uses fuel oil with a high sulfur content. At times, the pollutants are transported by winds from Rosarito, through Tijuana, and north across the border. A network of air monitoring stations in Tijuana and Rosarito now provides accurate data on air quality in the region. Tijuana has significant air |
quality problems, particularly with elevated levels of Ozone and small particles (PM10). Given the rapid growth of population and the number of vehicles in the urban area, it is likely that air quality will continue to decline with greater negative effects on human health. V. Bioresources. Urbanization, farming, and ranching have had a heavy impact on the habitats and species of the Tijuana municipality. Much of the riparian habitats of the Tijuana and Alamar rivers has been largely destroyed, although sections of these habitats remain in the middle and upper parts of the Tijuana watershed. Coastal sage scrub is also heavily impacted by human activity. An important ecosystem that is threatened by human activities is the Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve, located in San Diego at the mouth of the Tijuana River. Although in the United States the health of this valuable ecosystem is affected by what occurs in Tijuana. Sewage discharges, noon-point source pollution from runoff during storm events, and siltation caused by erosion of urbanized areas of Tijuana all negatively impact this ecosystem. VI. Marine Environment. Renegade sewage flows, along with non-point source pollutants transported during storm events, makes the Tijuana River the largest source of many biological and chemical pollutants in the Southern California-Baja California border region. Discharge of poorly treated sewage from the Punta Bandera plant into the surf and inadequate septic systems in houses and developments along the coast both contribute to high levels of pollution in the nearshore marine environment. The coastal waters and beaches along the shore of the Municipality of Tijuana are probably unsafe for human contact and recreational activities. VII. Natural Hazards. The heavy rains of the winter of 1993 produced serious flooding and landslides in Tijuana. Particularly affected were colonias built on unstable slopes. The municipal and state governments moved to resolve this problem by |
prohibiting housing construction on dangerous sites. There are a number of dams and reservoirs in the Tijuana River basin upstream from urban Tijuana, located both in Mexico and San Diego County. These present potential hazards since they are vulnerable to earthquakes or overflow during periods of significant rainfall. Health Services Health services in Tijuana include those provided by the government and those offered by private providers. Federal health care services are provided by the following: Secretariat of Health (Secretaría de Salud--SSA), provides services for the general population that does not have other coverage. It includes 22 primary care units and the Hospital General de Tijuana. SSA, along with the private health care system, provides health services for the 45 percent of Tijuana's population that is not covered by one of the government health insurance programs. Social Security (Instituto Mexicano de Seguro Social--IMSS), provides services for employees of the private sector. This does not include those who engage in formal work for small businesses that do not pay Social Security taxes. It has 6 primary care units and two hospitals. Institute of Health and Social Security of Workers of the State (Instituto de Salud y Seguridad Social para los Trabajadores del Estado--ISSSTE), provides health services for employees of federal agencies, including parastate and state industries. It has 4 units, one of which is a general hospital. State workers in Baja California receive services from the Institute of Health and Social Security of Workers of the State (Instituto de Salud y Seguridad Social para los Trabajadores del Estado de Baja California--ISSSTE-CALLI). It has two units, one of which is a general hospital. |
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