WiLD Blog

Despite the embarrassing pleading of the UT editorial board on Monday for the feds to give Bajagua a fat sole-source no bid contract to build a sewage plant in Tijuana, the project is experiencing what the T-1000 in T2 went through after Arnold threw it into the pit of molten steel — dying an ugly death. Of course having the UT plead to the IBWC to give Bajagua a contract would be like having Dick Cheney write you a letter of recommendation to get a job at MoveOn.org — a tragic blunder.

If that wasn’t bad enough, according to the UT’s Mike Lee, during the September 14 court hearing on the existing International Wastewater Treatment Plant’s ongoing violations of the Clean Water Act: “U.S. District Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz left in place a September 2008 deadline for the International Boundary and Water Commission to fix the pollution problem created by its wastewater treatment plant in San Ysidro.”

That means, unless Bajagua builds their plant in less than one year, their project is dead. Finished. Muerto. Finis. Kaput. Dude — it’s over.

Meanwhile, plans for building an alternative treatment plant on the U.S. side of the border that would cost $500 million less than Bajagua are moving forward. And the alternative publicly funded project has the political support in the U.S. Senate that Bajagua does not have. Here is the UT again.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said she supports putting $66 million toward the San Ysidro facility next year — enough to get the roughly $100 million retrofitting project well under way. Her position is important because she sits on the Senate Appropriations Committee, which is negotiating next year’s budget with the House. “I believe it presents the best opportunity for dealing with Tijuana River pollution,” Feinstein said in a statement sent yesterday to The San Diego Union-Tribune. At this point, there are simply too many unresolved questions about the Bajagua proposal,” she said. “We simply cannot afford to wait any longer on the assumption that the Bajagua plan will work out.”

More than 19 organizations including some of the U.S. and Mexico’s most influential environmental groups signed onto an August 20 letter to Feinstein supporting the alternative treatment plant. Some of the groups included the Natural Resources Defense Council, Heal the Bay, Defenders of Wildlife, The Ocean Conservancy the San Diego Chapters of the Audubon Society and the Sierra Club and the Coronado Surfing Association (I also signed onto the letter for WiLDCOAST).

The Bajagua team — Jim Simmons, Enrique Landa, Gary Sirota, Craig Benedetto and Marco Gonzalez — can’t seem to get a break these days. They’ve lost their support among the feds in the Senate and among enviros. Lee also reported that: “Bajagua’s preconstruction process in Mexico has not gone smoothly. Yesterday, company officials blamed the boundary commission for suspending work on the project. That status discourages construction companies from preparing bids for the job, Bajagua officials said.”

What corporation in their right mind would make plans with a company that has to depend on the IBWC and a federal judge to obtain a contract? Isn’t the point of the private sector to find customers on the open market and sell them a product? Where do judges and federal agencies fit into Adam Smith’s great big plan? What business school you have to attend to learn to write business plans like that at?

I can only imagine what Bajagua’s elevator pitch is these days, “Bro — if the judge grants an extension, and these fed dudes in El Paso approve our project, we might just have a killer sewage plant in TJ for you to partner with us on.”

In the meantime, sewage-polluted water continues to foul the waters of Imperial Beach. Over Labor Day weekend scores of surfers reported stinky water. And last Friday and Saturday the entire beachfront stunk, according to one observer, “like a dead seal.” One surf mom reported finding a condom in the water. Most likely the pollution was coming from the Punta Bandera sewage river miles south of the U.S.-Mexico border — a problem Bajagua would never solve. Can you say quagmire?

– SERGE DEDINA

Originally published in the Voice of San Diego 

Last Thursday evening the Bajagua family — Jim Simmons, Gary Sirota, Marco Gonzalez and various hangers-on — showed up in full force to the International Boundary and Water Commissions (IBWC) Citizen’s Forum at the beachside city of Imperial Beach Dempsey Holder Safety Center. There they enjoyed an evening of tense exchanges in broken Spanish with hapless bureaucrats responsible for improving Tijuana’s aging sewage infrastructure system.

The colorful Bajaguas of Rancho Santa Fe were more than likely a little disappointed that during the presentation by Toribio Cueva (Assistant Director of the Sanitation Department, State Public Services Commission of Tijuana (CESPT)) about improvements being made in TJ to the city’s sewage infrastructure, he did not once mention the Bajagua project.

The bizarre notion that Bajagua occupies a major space in the Mexican bureaucracy for future planning of sewage treatment plants, is a fantasy spun by the company’s PR rep, Craig Benedetto and bought hook line and sinker by the gullible San Diego media.

Luckily Scott Lewis of the Voice exposed the first Bajagua media hoaxthat their project was a “comprehensive solution” to the border sewage crisis that had been common currency for years among many reporters covering the company.

But some people never learn. On Aug. 9 Benedetto issued the following press release:

Bajagua Announces Issuance of Concession to Use Federal Property by Government of Mexico

Bajagua, LLC announced Wednesday that it has received a critical concession from the Government of Mexico to use federal land in the construction of the Bajagua sewage treatment facility.. “This is a major step forward for Bajagua and for clean water,” said Jim Simmons, Managing Partner of Bajagua, LLC. “There were those who have doubted Mexico’s support for Bajagua and our ability to get permission to use federal land for this important bi-national purpose. Those doubts should now be put to rest,” he added. “This important milestone brings all of the environmental and economic development benefits of Bajagua much closer to reality,” said Simmons.

According to an Aug. 31 review of the original Spanish language “concession” conducted by Fernando Ochoa of the Northwest Center of Environmental Law (and one of Mexico top environmental attorneys) that Bajagua claims is a “critical” is the conclusion that,

This concession is not valid or in effect UNTIL Bajagua complies with the following (see pages 4 and 5 of the Resolution):

• Submit to CAN {National Water Commission) the construction plans of the project for review and approval.
  
• Obtain environmental impact assessment authorization from DGIRA-SEMARNAT
  
• Pay all costs required
  
• Once Bajagua complies with the requirements stated in the resolution and submits the series of documents CNA has required, Bajagua should get the TITLE OF CONCESSION issued by CNA.

The afore mentioned resolution does not represent the Mexican Federal Government’s support for Bajagua LLC’s wastewater project. The project is still pending authorizations from other Federal Agencies such as Direccion General de Riesgo e Impacto Ambiental (DGIRA).

What Benedetto informed the media as a critical concession is really nothing than an application review letter that means very little at all in Mexico. What counts is a “title of concession.”

If the San Diego media would have bothered to contact someone with some knowledge about Mexico’s legal system, they would have learned this. But Bajagua is desperate to get a favorable ruling on Sept. 14, in a state lawsuit against the U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission, an arm of the State Department. and will do anythingg to win a federal contract that will earn the millions.

So not surprisingly, San Diego reporters lapped up Benedetto’s press release. With the UT’s Mike Lee printing parts of the release verbatim without corroborating the “truthiness” of Benedetto’s release:

Sally Spener, a spokeswoman for the boundary commission, said yesterday that her agency is evaluating Mexico’s land concession documents and would not comment on them.

Hint to the U-T: get reporters who speak Spanish and know Mexico well to cover issues that take place in Mexico. Otherwise your reporters will have to rely on overworked American bureaucrats like Spener to verify Mexican legal information for you instead of taking advantage of an entire country filled with Spanish-speaking sources.

KPBS’s Ed Joyce just quoted Benedetto’s incoherent interpretation of his own release:

Craig Benedetto … says getting land from the Mexican government is key to moving the project forward. Benedetto: The land itself is federally owned land and it was important because it shows one, Mexico’s commitment in putting some skin into the game by contributing that land. As well as showing their formal support contractually by issuing a concession to the company.

Ironically, since the company has no title of concession Craig admitted that the company actually doesn’t have any support, land or any “skin.”

Here’s a free hint for San Diego reporters covering issues in Mexico — never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever trust the word of a public relations consultant and developer spinmeister when he compares his “critical” letter from the Mexican government to a piece of skin.

– SERGE

originally published in the VOICEOFSANDIEGO.ORG

 

Ocean water quality off Imperial Beach and Coronado is notoriously bad due to sewage-contaminated runoff from the Tijuana River.  However, Mexico is not the only source of water pollution here. A sewage treatment plant on the U.S. side of the border in San Ysidro has been continuously discharging off Imperial Beach in violation of clean water laws since its first day of operation in 1999.  U.S. government agencies have documented this as a significant environmental health threat and possibly the worst discharge into coastal waters in the entire state. 

Ten years ago a group of investors created Bajagua LLC, a private company looking to capitalize on the need for clean water in south San Diego County. They claimed their project would once and for all “comprehensively” address all sewage flows crossing the border from Mexico by constructing a mega treatment plant funded by U.S. taxpayers in Tijuana. They spread their money around in campaign contributions, lawyer fees, and high-powered lobbyists to the tune of $30 million.  While Bajagua attempted to advance their project, they used their new connections to block all other plans to bring the treatment plant in San Ysidro up to clean water standards.  Ten years later, the San Ysidro plant continues to discharge in violation of both state and federal regulations and the coastal communities of Imperial Beach and Coronado continue to be held hostage by Bajagua LLC.   

The Bajagua project is floundering. With a suspended development agreement and lacking political support in both the U.S. and Mexico, the only individuals, elected officials, and organizations that continue to support Bajagua have direct financial ties to the company. Bajagua lobbyists claim the project will benefit taxpayers since the project’s investors will front the money to build the plant. However, in the end U.S. taxpayers will pay for the entire project, a sum total estimated to be between $600 million-$1billion.  This includes the $30-$40 million in “development costs” they have spent so far in lobbyist and lawyer fees, campaign contributions, and a 10-15% additional profit that comes to at least $60 million. This “profit” is taxpayer money that should fund clean water solutions, not enrich investors.   Bajagua is not even a viable project since there is no guarantee that Bajagua will satisfy water regulations due to the EPA and water board’s inability to enforce regulations in Mexico.  Finally, as mentioned above, Mexico has already paid for secondary treatment at the IWTP more than 10 years ago and they haven’t received anything in return.

There is no proposed solution to collect or treat the wet weather flows from Mexico that produce beach closures and represent a serious environmental health threat to south San Diego County communities. However, providing secondary treatment at the IWTP is the first step to comprehensively deal with the cross-border sewage threat. To stop beach closures we desperately need increased collection of Tijuana’s sewage. With funding from Congress, the US EPA can continue to work directly with Tijuana’s water authority, CESPT, on infrastructure projects to collect sewage from the city’s rapidly growing areas. CESPT has a solid track record working with the U.S. EPA on collaborative projects. Once the sewage is collected, we can treat it at the San Ysidro plant, which can be expanded to 4 times the current capacity on the existing federal government site. Pumps can also be accommodated on the site to send the treated sewage back to Tijuana for reuse. 

We can and must increase treatment of the sewage effluent that is discharged daily off our beaches in violation of State and Federal Law. It is time for our elected officials in Washington to step up and represent our San Diego community’s need for clean water and support the IBWC construction funds necessary to bring the IWTP into discharge compliance as soon as possible.  

Mexico has never supported the Bajagua project. All Mexico wants is for the U.S., after eight years of delay, to fulfill its treaty obligations to provide secondary treatment at the San Ysidro plant. Mexico’s show of no confidence in Bajagua is demonstrated by the fact that they are currently building 4 treatment plants in Tijuana that will begin to go online in early 2008 to meet the current and estimated needs of the city through 2020.  Every letter of support Bajagua claims it has received from Mexico is nothing more than a written courtesy acknowledging the company’s existence. An article in the San Diego Union-Tribune on August 10 claimed Bajagua had received a letter of support from Mexico in which CESPT granted a land concession to the company. This “concession” letter in fact means very little. Anybody in Mexico, with or without a project, can get what Bajagua is calling a “concession”. In agreement with Chapter II of the Mexican National Water Law, Bajagua needs a “titulo de concesion” to develop its project. To get this they need to complete and submit engineering plans, obtain treatment and discharge permits, and complete an environmental impact report- all of which they have yet to do. In no way is this letter a milestone for Bajagua or even a sign of Mexican support for the project. The facts are that Mexico has never supported the Bajagua project. All Mexico wants is for the U.S., after eight years of delay, to fulfill its treaty obligations to provide secondary treatment at the San Ysidro plant. Every letter of support Bajagua claims it has received from Mexico is nothing more than a written courtesy acknowledging the company’s existence.

WiLDCOAST supports the expansion of the San Ysidro treatment plant to guarantee that the sewage dumped daily off Imperial Beach meets clean water standards and fulfill our treaty agreement with Mexico. To complete this all we need is funding from Congress. Thanks to Sen. Feinstein there is now $66 million in the budget for the expanded treatment of the San Ysidro plant.  Additional supporters of this option include the Cities of Imperial Beach and Coronado, Congresswoman Susan Davis, and all of the U.S. government agencies charged with enforcing water quality regulations at the border. These include the US EPA, the IBWC and the State Water Board. 

There is no need for Bajagua and it is shameful that project proponents continue to actively block the clean water solutions our border communities desperately need.

-Ben McCue

 

We have our fair share of clean water issues here in San Diego, but we are not alone. In the Midwest, a large battle is brewing over the area’s largest oil refinery’s plans to discharge more pollutants into Lake Michigan. A permit has been issued that allows the refinery to dump 53% more ammonia and 35% more pounds of suspended solids.

Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, and the only one in the group located entirely within the United States.

Public outcry has been huge, with more than 45,000 people signing a petition against the permit and politicians are stepping up as well too. The United States House of Representatives approved a resolution urging the state of Indiana to reconsider issuing the permit.

To me this demonstrates the fact that people do care about their environment and our politicians do listen to our voices. Collective action such as public awareness and petitions do make a difference in affecting change. People commonly ask: “What does one person matter?” The thing is every person counts towards a collective whole that can affect great changes when needed, and every person is needed.

Having awareness and appreciation of the natural environment and the ways we affect it is crucial when tackling environmental issues such as this. Rahm Emanuel, the Democratic representative of Illinois said, “Fifteen years ago, they may have been able to pull this off, but there has been a total consciousness change among the people that live here.”

People have learned that they are equally affected by the quality of Lake Michigan as well as the plants and creatures that live there. They’ve come to appreciate its natural beauty. We should all have pride in where we live and work to protect the natural environment that we are a part of. We can’t allow private interests to restrict or pollute our access to something that belongs to all of us.

-Calvin Lee

If you’re a sleazy wannabe federal contractor begging for earmarks who has benefited from close personal friendships with Dick “Shotgun” Cheney, Duncan “Baseball Bat” Hunter, Duke “Jailbird” Cunningham, and Brian “Skiploader” Bilbray, it has to hurt when Fox News (national that is) turns on you.

That is exactly what happened to Bajagua last Friday when Fox News did a hit piece on the Rancho Santa Fe company. Things are so bad at Bajagua these days that the company could only field its hapless CEO, Jim Simmons, for the Fox cameras instead one of his younger surrogates such as Craig Benedetto, Gary Sirota and Marco Gonzalez.

For a company in a free fall like Bajagua, getting hammered by the “fair and balanced” folks at Fox is like having someone throw you a cement life buoy when you are drowning.

The Fox News piece was almost as bad for the company as the headline in the U-T on July 15, “Bajagua Plan Maybe be on the Brink.” According to the article:

Sen. Dianne Feinstein could deal a decisive blow to a decade-old proposal by Bajagua LLC of San Marcos. Bajagua has spent millions of dollars pushing its plan to build a U.S.-funded sewage-treatment plant in Mexico instead of upgrading a troubled facility in San Ysidro. But now, Feinstein wants Congress to spend $66 million on improvements at the San Ysidro site, which the federal government owns. She wields budget influence as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. The San Ysidro project “offers the most certainty to the people of Imperial Beach and Coronado that the wastewater coming in from Mexico will be treated to U.S. standards,” Feinstein, D-Calif., said in a statement to The San Diego Union-Tribune.

What the UT story did was also provide more detail on the GAO study:

Although Feinstein backs the San Ysidro expansion plan, she asked the Government Accountability Office on Friday to compare it with the Bajagua proposal. She wants the GAO to look at factors such as cost-effectiveness, practicality and timeliness of completion.

The most interesting part of Feinstein’s GAO letter with implications for the army of consultants, lawyers and lobbyists on the Bajagua payroll was this question:

Are Bajagua LLC investors, employees, consultants or legal counsel associated with organizations participating in lawsuits against the International Boundary and Water Commission regarding the Tijuana River sewage?

Next up in the bad news train for Bajagua was the letter from the Regional Water Quality Control board that the UT reported on,

Also on Friday, regional water-pollution officials said for the first time that Bajagua does not seem to be a viable option. Improving the San Ysidro plant “is the best way to move forward expeditiously,” Susan Ritschel, chairwoman of the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board, said in a letter to Feinstein.

A few year ago when Bajagua landed Cheney and company to shill for its sole-source no bid contract (after sending them fat campaign checks), Simmons and his partner Enrique Landa must have partied like Wayne and Garth backstage with Def Leopard . Now, they are like the only guys at an N’Sync concert — feeling pretty lonely and a little ripped off.

If you are going to tie your fortunes to a bunch of San Diego congressmen who assure you they have a “lock” on the White House to deliver your fat government contract, you better make sure they really do before you put them on the payroll. Since the White House forbade former Surgeon General Richard Carmona from helping the Special Olympics because of its connection with Ted Kennedy, do you think Bush and Rove are going to do anything to help Hunter and Bilbray, when the North and East County duo helped kill their immigration bill? Why would 43 reward Bob Filner with a contract for his campaign donors when the Chula Vista congressman opposes the war in Iraq and the expansion of the border fence?

Bajagua has been a great deal for a few elected officials and lawyers who have collected big checks by making all kinds of promises they couldn’t keep. To save face, the Bajagua team made a show of badgering a couple of bureaucrats for show in congress recently when the contract didn’t get signed. Maybe Simmons and Landa can have the following bumper sticker made up for their Cadillacs, “I spent $40 million and all I have to show for it was a lousy congressional hearing.”

– SERGE DEDINA

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE VOICEOFSANDIEGO.ORG