David Gibson,Co-Chair
Recovery Team
I'd like to welcome you to the Tijuana River Valley Recovery Team web site. As the Co-Chair of the Recovery Team, I feel a tremendous responsibility for the team to accomplish its vision of a Tijuana River Valley freed from the trash and sediment that have hampered the restoration of natural habitats and impaired the water quality and beneficial uses of the valley.
The Recovery Team is an experiment based on the belief that if government agencies and the people who work in those agencies are given a chance to work together for a common goal, they can achieve that goal. From the perspective of the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board, cleaning up the impairments of trash and sediment in the valley is a high priority. As the Water Board's Executive Officer, I hope the Recovery Team can successfully achieve that and more without the need of the legal and regulatory mechanisms my agency is often required to use to achieve compliance.
If you are a member of the team, I hope this web site will serve you well in helping to achieve our goals. If you are a member of the public, I hope what you find here will be of value in understanding the valley and its challenges. If you are with the media, this web site should be a good resource for you in shaping your stories. We hope elected officials and philanthropists will find answers and a reason to fund the many expensive projects that will be required to achieve our goals.
I'd like to thank OpenOceans Global and the Sempra Energy Foundation for their assistance in this work and in funding this web site. I know that I, along with co-chairs Grant Destache and Carl Nettleton are looking forward to the results of the Recovery Team's efforts.
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Number of visits:
This is the project where more than 30 local, state, and federal agencies on both sides of the border are coming together to define and implement a new strategy to resolve more than 70 years of degradation to the Tijuana River Valley.
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This web site is made possible by OpenOceans Global thanks to a grant from the Sempra Energy Foundation.
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Our Vision:
A Tijuana River Valley free of historical trash and sediment, protected from future deposits of trash and sediment, restored to a sustained physical, chemical and biological integrity, and performing its hydrologic functions, while respecting the rights of current and future landowners and users.
Our Mission:
To bring together the governmental administrative, regulatory, and funding agencies in tandem with advice from the scientific community, the environmental community, and affected stakeholders to protect the Tijuana River Valley from future accumulations of trash and sediment, idenitify, remove, recycle or dispose of existing trash and sediment, and restore the Tijuana River floodplain to a balanced wetland ecosystem.
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The Premises of the Recovery Team Are Simple:
1. If we can stop new trash and unwanted sediment before it reaches the valley, then we can successfully cleanup the valley.
2. If we successfully cleanup the valley, then we can successfully restore its hydrology and natural values.
3. If we can restore its hydrology and natural values, then we can successfully address the remaining water quality issues.
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See new video interviews of Recovery Team members.
Joint TRNERR/Border 2012 meeting March 17 at the Tijuana Estuary Visitor Center
New maps show 25, 100, and 500-year floodplains
March 16 TJ River Team Update now online
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Agencies Represented
More than thirty agencies have participated in Recovery Team activities since work began in October 2008. Links to those agencies are provided below.
FEDERAL AGENCIES (10)
International Boundary and Water Commission, U.S. Section
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve
US Army Corps of Engineers, Planning Branch
US Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
US Border Patrol
US Bureau of Reclamation
US Environmental Protection Agency
US Fish and Wildlife Service
US Navy
STATE AGENCIES (7)
California Coastal Commission
California Coastal Conservancy
California Environmental Protection
Agency, Office of Bi-National Affairs
California Integrated Waste Management Board
California State Parks
California State Water Resources Control Board
San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board
San Diego State University
Scripps Institution of Oceanography
City of Imperial Beach
City of San Diego, Local Enforcement Agency
City of San Diego, Storm Water Department
City of San Diego, Water Department
County of San Diego, Parks Department
County of San Diego, Public Works Department
San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG)
San Diego County Water Authority
Southern California Coastal Water Research Project (SCCWRP)
International Boundary and Water Commission, Mexican Section
CESPTE
City of Tijuana, Urban Planning Department
Southwest Wetlands Interpretive Association (SWIA)
WildCoast
