Hello everyone, I'm coming to you live from the Internet Cafe in Rosarito and let me tell you, every computer is taken by young people writing papers, working on their homework, it's a refreshing sight. We have spent the past three days on the phone with Dell reconfiguring our software and harddrives. we will be completely reformatting the system next Saturday, and then I will be able to upload the two videos of San Antonio Del Mar showing no sewage being dumped into the ocean - so thank you for bearing with us, and special thank to Jeff, BigBadBart at You Tube, a computer brain for all of his help from all the way back in Erie. Thanks Jeff.
Now here is the story Serge Dedina and Wildcoast don't want you to know, and possibly they don't even know themselves.
As you are aware, since July of 2006, Serge Dedina & Wildcoast have been running a video on their site at You Tube showing a pipe which they describe as new and as spewing raw sewage in to the ocean at San Antonio Del Mar and being a cause of pollution for both Imperial Beach and Coronado, particularly on a south swell.
Initially, questions were submitted to this group on the You Tube response format, which they neither acknowledged or answered, and infact, erased, and then said I was "attacking" them and that I was on medication. These are the questions which were submitted to them:
1. The exact location of the pipe.
2. If the water coming out of the pipe had been tested for pathogens, and if so, what were the results including the diminishing effects of salt and sun on the pathogens, if any.
3. What was the measured rate of flow coming out of the pipe? Inotherwords, was this is constant flow, what was the volume?
4. What was the exact source of the water coming out of the pipe?
5. Had Serge Dedina or Wildcoast contacted either CESPT or the San Antonio Homeowner's Association ?
Many residents from both San Antonio Del Mar and Baja Malibu scoured the beach searching for this pipe, in order to document it, and in order to obtain water samples from any flow. Nothing could be found. In addition, the first video (7-8 minutes duration)taken of the complete northern sector of SADM, showing no pipe, was given to him as a video respose on You Tube. Still, offered this information and testimony, Mr. Dedina stubbornly refused to answer any of us, or to remove the 13 second video from the Wildcoast You Tube site. After conferring with CESPT Representatives and members of the San Antonio Del Mar Homeowner's Association, this is what we now know to be true and factual:
1. Serge Dedina and Wildcoast had and have nothing to do with, or any influence on sewage matters at San Antonio Del Mar or it's environs. Serge Dedina and Wildcoast had and have no communication with either CESPT or the SADM Homeowner's Association regarding sewage matters at San Antonio Del Mar. I point this out, because Serge Dedina lives only 1/2 hour away from here. Why, if this situation merited a video, did he not drive down to investigate ? He would have you believe by reading the Wildcoast Site that he is influential and has a special relationship with the Mexican Ejidos and Mexican agencies. Yet, although he posted the video, he never showed up here at all.
2. Two and one half years ago, a landowner behind San Antonio Del Mar had a holding tank for his wastewater. (grey water)
3. During heavy rains, the holding tank would overflow onto the ground.
4. The owners routed the overflow so that it would drain into the central channel at SADM, which was originally designed to carry rainwater runoff.
5. San Antonio Del Mar Homeowner's Association notifies CESPT.
6. CESPT monitors the overflow, making sure it is treated and approves a pipe installation to carry the water while their engineers determine the best place to route the overflow.
7. With the approval of CESPT, the residents of SADM have the pipe installed at their own expense.
8. CESPT appears weekly to monitor the flow for pathogens and heavy metals. Keep in mind this is an irregular flow, sometimes once a week, mostly never.
9. CESPT engineers completely divert the TREATED flow from across the highway to router sewer lines by the top level swimming pool bathrooms, where it goes to SADM lift and treatment stations.
10. There is no pipe spewing raw sewage onto the beach and into the ocean at SADM.
End of story. Well, not quite. San Antonio Del Mar is completely on sewer lines, just like yours in the States. We have two lift stations at either end of SADM. From these stations, the wastewater flows to our pump and treatment station. From there, it is pumped to Tecolote La Gloria in TJ and then on to San Diego for more treatment. I want to take a second here and thank Al Gore for dedicating the Treatment Facility in San Ysidro several years back and President Bill Clinton for mandating another treatment facility, which will be the Bajagua Project, approved by everyone from the Surfrider Foundation, The Sierra Club, Rep. Duncan Hunter (R), Rep.
Bob Filner (D) to just about everyone else, EXCEPT Serge Dedina and Wildcoast.
To give you an idea of the amount of wastewater produced at San Antonio Del Mar, here are the current figures from the office of Jorge Ramos, Chief Engineer of Tijuanna and recent recipient of the highly prestigious Honor's Award from the Govenor of Baja California, and outgoing President Vincente Fox:
"Playa Fraccionamiemto SADM has the lowest monthly (m3) flow(l/s) of between:
5,612 - 9,000
Compared to Tijuanna of:
2,315,877 - 3,200,00 "
As you can see, the amount is miniscule and it can be said without question that the three times treated wastewater of San Antonio Del Mar has absolutely no polluting effects on either Imperial Beach or Coronado, even on a huge south swell, with double overhead waves outside.
So, what gives? Well, according to San Antonio Del Mar residents, another alarmed resident, unawares of the CESPT monitoring and total involvement in this matter, nor in communication with the SADM Homeowner's Association handed a thirteen second video over to Serge Dedina and Wildcoast, and instead of conducting an investigation, they ran with it.
Furthermore, Serge Dedina and Wildcoast have openly boasted on this blog that they and PBS (KPBS) are preparing an expose of Rosarito and northwards to SADM, to show this area as being a cause for pollution in Imperial Beach and Coronado.
Whether you believe his pompous bombast is up to you - but I hope that they film the almost new billion dollar Sewage Treatment Plant in Rosarito, which eliminates speculation that Rosarito Beach is polluting Imperial Beach and Coronado.
In addition, CESPT has connected all of the new development behind us and are working on the beachside to flow into this Treatment Plant. If you are familiar with this area, the Rosarito boundary begins right after Baja Malibu.
CESPT is also developing a similar new Treatment Facility for the new condos in construction on our side of the boundary line.
The upshot is this: There was never a time when raw sewage flowed into the ocean at San Antonio Del Mar. TREATED grey water did "flow" for a very short period of time, and this can be validated through CESPT records. The Wildcoast video on You Tube
is fanatical and lunacy, based not on fact. Marvin of the SADM Homeowner's Association deserves a medal, kudos and mucho cerveza for his leadership and handling of this issue when it happened. CESPT likewise, and they are top notch with qualified scientists and engineers. CESPT should be applauded and recognized for their excellent work in keeping our beaches clean, and not hazardous Serge Dedina would have you believe.
Finally, some advise to Gringos living in Mexico. This is a case in point of Mexican Agencies working professionally. Believe it or not, it does happen all the time, you just don't hear about it. Please take it to heart, and should you have a problem of any kind down here, take it to the Mexican authorities. Afterall, this is Mexico, not a bedroom community of San Diego. Did you know that there is also a Mexican Greenpeace?
Serge Dedina would like you to believe that he is the savior of the Mexican environment. Well, he isn't. Ask any Mexican National. His viscious and untrue statements verge on vigilantism. Unfortunately, he and Wildcoast through incidents such as this, give the conservationists, the environmentalists and decent communities like San Antonio Del Mar a bad name. Dedina needs to focus on the pollution generated by an overpopulated San Diego and its old and outdated sewer and water lines, to name just a few problems. Just two weeks ago, Mission Bay was shut down from high bacterial counts that noone knew were coming from. They weren't coming from down here. And that same week, an e-coli scare in North San Diego County, leaving thousands of people without potable water. He can't blame that one on us either. People in glass houses shouldn't throw bricks. Take care of your own backyard, Serge, we've got ours covered and we don't need you.
See you guys this coming weekend.
Goodnight, from Baja California.
ON EDIT: August 23, 2006:
Here are the two videos showing no pipe spewing raw sewage into the ocean at SADM:
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Note: Part Two isn't coming up, go back to Part One, click my name, which will take you to my videos - on the right hand side you will see Part Two and just click it.
