Tijuana’s water utility removes roughly 915 tons of solid waste every month from 54 sewage pump stations across the city, according to CESPT director Mónica Vega Aguirre. The Comisión Estatal de Servicios Públicos de Tijuana (CESPT) says the ongoing maintenance program is designed to prevent blockages that could send raw wastewater into streets, drainage channels, and ultimately the Pacific coast.
Workers conduct overnight cleaning operations at pump stations throughout the CESPT service area, which covers Tijuana and parts of Playas de Rosarito. A recent operation at the Rosarito Norte plant removed 40 tons of debris in a single session. Crews descend as deep as 15 meters (about 49 feet) into the stations and spend up to seven hours per shift pulling out accumulated material.
Mattresses, Rags, and Wood Clog the System
The waste extracted from pump stations is not just sludge. CESPT crews regularly find rags, wood, mattresses, and other large household items that residents have dumped into the sewer system. These objects jam pumps and reduce flow capacity, creating the conditions for sewage backups and overflows.
Vega Aguirre said the 54 pump stations, known locally as “cárcamos,” are critical nodes in the city’s wastewater collection network. When a pump station fails, untreated sewage can back up into residential streets or flow toward the coast through open drainage channels. That risk is especially acute during the rainy season, when stormwater adds volume to an already strained system.
Why It Matters for the Coast
Tijuana’s sewage infrastructure has been a cross-border flashpoint for years. Transboundary sewage flows into the Tijuana River Valley and the Pacific Ocean have triggered beach closures in both Mexico and San Diego County. Under the 1944 Water Treaty and International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) agreements, Mexico bears primary responsibility for preventing untreated wastewater discharges into shared waterways.
CESPT operates the collection system on the Mexican side, including pipelines, pump stations, and treatment plants. The agency’s maintenance record directly affects whether raw sewage reaches the ocean. The South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant on the U.S. side was built in the early 1990s to handle Tijuana sewage, but Tijuana’s rapid population growth has overwhelmed existing infrastructure.
Keeping pump stations clear is one of the most basic preventive measures available to the utility. Each of the 54 stations must be cleaned regularly to maintain flow to treatment facilities. CESPT’s 915-ton monthly removal figure amounts to roughly 17 tons per station per month on average.
This story was first reported by Jornada BC.