LONG-AWAITED LAUNCH OF SOUTH BAY PLANT REHABILITATION AND EXPANSION

The work at the San Diego, Calif., plant is jointly funded between the USIBWC and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

On October 29, 2024 the United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission (USIBWC) celebrated the launch of the rehabilitation and expansion of the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant (SBIWTP), a project that will double the facility's capacity.

The project’s early work to start this year includes setting up a bypass system for the primary facilities and performing in-depth structural assessments of the concrete structures. This will be followed with concrete repairs early in the new year.

The project includes infrastructure rehabilitation and capacity expansion to double current treatment capacity of 25 million gallons per day (MGD) to reach 50 MGD average flow, with a peak hydraulic flow capacity of 75 MGD.

The first phase, in the amount of $42.4 million, covers design for the full scope of the rehabilitation and expansion of SBIWTP. The USIBWC awarded the contract to PCL Construction of Long Beach, Calif. PCL selected Stantec Consulting Services, Inc., of San Diego, as the design firm. The full project cost, including design, construction, contingencies, project management, and other support services, is estimated at $600 million.

Dr. Maria-Elena Giner, P.E., USIBWC Commissioner, celebrated the project's launch with other leaders from the U.S. and Mexico during a ceremony at the plant on Tuesday, October 29, 2024. “The USIBWC, our Congressional supporters, the Department of State, the Environmental Protection Agency, and other federal, state, and local stakeholders as well as the residents of this area, have been waiting for this moment for a long time,” said Commissioner Giner.

“It's taken a lot of work to get to this point, including more than $30 million in repairs to the plant over the last year. This expansion is just part of our strategy to help protect public health. We are also monitoring Mexico’s sanitation infrastructure improvements and taking urgent actions to eliminate dry weather transboundary flows.”

The USIBWC anticipates design to be completed in 20 months. The maximum timeline for construction is 5 years, although this could be decreased by as much as 18 months through the innovative Progressive Design-Build approach. The plant will remain in operation throughout design and construction. The USIBWC anticipates providing more definitive estimates of the full project cost and the construction schedule once the project reaches the 30% design stage in Spring 2025 and 60% design stage by Fall 2025.

Full Press release