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United States
Environmental Protection secretariademedtoambiente
Agency Y RECURSOS naturales
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT
AUTUMN 2016
oOER 20
'VrERf-
-------
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Cover photos:
Imperial Valley, California
Jeremy Bauer
U.S. EPA Region 9
-------
PAGE 3
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL
The Border 2020 Program has established a strong alliance between our two countries and re-
inforces, more than ever, the message that cooperation is the best way to achieve integral solu-
tions to environmental and public health challenges that we face today at the local, regional and
global levels. The cooperation model promoted in the framework of this Program has been,
and is fundamental to ensuring that border communities are developed sustainably and in har-
mony with the environment.
During nearly three decades of collaboration between our two countries, we have achieved
benefits that improve the quality of life of communities on both sides of the border, and the
preservation of our common environment. For example, we have collaborated with the Border
Health Commission to identify and address joint environmental and public health priorities and
concerns in the border region. We have worked together to improve children's health and pro-
mote environmental health education and outreach to vulnerable populations.
This report contains some highlights of the achievements and efforts of the Border 2020 Pro-
gram during the last two years. We are pleased that during the last two years of work, thirty-five
projects have been concluded to improve conditions facing border communities and eleven are
in the implementation phase. These projects have addressed challenges of clean water, air quali-
ty, proper management of solid waste, environmental emergency response and environmental
stewardship.
Now that we are hallway through the implementation period of the Program, we, as National
Coordinators, reiterate our support to partners from government at all levels, including tribal
governments in the border states of the United States and the Mexican indigenous communi-
ties. We also appreciate the support and commitment of all individuals, communities, organiza-
tions and institutions involved in the many activities of the Program and whose participation is
critical to improve environmental and public health conditions in the border region. We recog-
nize and celebrate all these efforts; the dedication and commitment of every person involved in
this Program has been essential to the successful completion of its ambitious goals and objec-
tives.
We invite you to take stock of our recent achievements and renew, with us, your continued support
and commitment for comprehensive binational solutions to address the public health and environ-
mental challenges that persist in the border region. Working together we can manage our shared
resources effectively and efficiently to meet these challenges.
Thank you very much!
Jane Nishida
National Coordinator
United States of America
Enrique Lendo
National Coordinator
Mexico
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 4
Introduction
At the midpoint, 2014-2016.
The U.S.-Mexico Environmental Program: Border 2020 is the fourth iteration of
the border cooperation between U.S. and Mexico under the La Paz Agreement of 1983.
The purpose of the Program is to address the environmental and health related challeng-
es facing border communities. Similar to past Border Environmental Programs, the Bor-
der 2020 Program is a partnership between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(USEPA), the Secretariat for Environment and Natural Resources of Mexico
(SEMARNAT), the ten Border States, the U.S. Border Tribes, Mexican Indigenous
Communities, NGOs, communities and stakeholders. The Border 2020 Program also
embraces a strong partnership with the Border Environment Cooperation Commission
(BECC) to administer USEPA's resources to implement projects and to provide tech-
nical assistance and support regional and the National Coordinators meetings.
This highlights report contains short summaries of a sample of border projects
that cover a range of activities including scrap tire and urban waste management, envi-
ronmental health awareness, air and water quality, emergency response, and wastewater
treatment, among others.
If you want to know more detail on the goals and objectives of the Border 2020
Program, we invite you to read the Border 2020 Framework Document. To read past
reports, please visit the USEPA and/or SEMARNAT web pages.
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PAGE 5
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
GOAL 1: REDUCE AIR POLLUTION
Characterization of drayage vehicle activities and emissions in the
Laredo air shed.
The Border 2020
Program awarded Texas
A&M Transportation Insti-
tute (TTI) a grant for ap-
proximately $89,750 USD,
in order to study the activi-
ties and emissions of dray-
age truck transportation
along the Laredo-Nuevo
Laredo border crossing.
Drayage vehicle activity is a
significant component of
total on-road vehicle activity
and mobile source emis-
sions in the Laredo-Nuevo
Laredo; airshed. Currently,
the air quality impacts of
drayage trucks are only par-
tially captured in regional
emissions inventories
through vehicle activity esti-
mations based on the re-
gional travel demand mod-
els (TDMs), These TDM-
based estimates are the main
source of information on
drayage activity in die re-
gion. The objective of the
project was to develop a
detailed understanding of
the regional drayage truck
activity within the Laredo-
Nuevo Laredo region using
the Motor Vehicle Emission
Simulator (MOVES) model
to estimate the emission
rates for particulate matter
(PM), nitrogen oxides
jJNDx), carbon monoxide
(CO), hydrocarbons (HC),
and carbon dioxide (COa) .
The study included
the installation of GPS units
on northbound fleet trucks
entering the U.S. from the
Laredo port of entry (POE)
that monitored the truck's
distance, speed, duration,
and emissions for each trip.
The speed of the vehicle
was used to determine the
emissions output of the ve-
hicle through emission esti-
mates using EPA MOVES
database. The maps pro-
duced from the data collect-
ed helped to picture the
movement of fleet trucks in
the region and provided for
a substantial visual for any
future infrastructure plans
and possible policy strate-
gies. Following the study,
TTI held a stakeholder
workshop to present its
findings and gather stake-
holder input on potential
recommendations for follow
-up actions to include possi-
ble strategies to reduce pol-
lutants from drayage activity
in the Laredo-Nuevo Lare-
do Region.
The results of the
study showed that Columbia
Bridge crossing in Laredo is
the most utilized port of
entry in the region and is
associated with relatively
high emissions caused by
high truck volumes and
slow speeds. The specific
geography of the Colombia
Bridge POE, and truck facil-
ities on die U.S. side of the
border results in high truck
volumes, low truck speeds,
and therefore high emis-
sions adjacent to urban are-
as Of Laredo. The infor-
mation from the report pro-
duced by the project could
be used with previously
published work on drayage
truck emissions to evaluate
die likely emission impacts
of 1) improvements to die
network such as the devel-
opment of alternative routes
or new or improved border
crossing facilities; or 2) im-
provements to die truck
fleet. The relative impacts of
each strategy, in addition to
estimates of die costs asso-
ciated with each, would pro-
vide an objective framework
for cross-border freight de-
cision making.
A stakeholder
workshop was held in Lare-
do on December, 2015 that
furthermore collected valua-
ble feedback from partici-
pants for die project. Feed-
back from stakeholders was
categorized by: 1) Coordina-
tion and Outreach and 2)
Technical recommenda-
tions. The "Coordination
and Outreach' recommen-
dations included to 1) devel-
op regular Air Quality (AQ)
workshops to keep stake-
holders updated; 2) grow a
proactive AQ management
committee or interest group;
3) Increase AQ educational
materials.
The Technical rec-
ommendations focused to:
1) develop further border
studies; 2) develop a real-
time border data tool; 3)
develop emission analysis
methods with varied
transport emission; 4) devel-
op an AQ border education
web portal; 5) incorporate
studies of the health impacts
for POE pedestrian traffic.
Installation of GPS Units (below) on Transportes FEMA vehicles (above),
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 6
Border 2020 supports effort to inventory and address air emissions in
Nogales.
Mayor David Cuauhtemoc Galindo Delgado discusses
Border2020 PROAIRE project,
With the support of
the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency and the
Border Environmental Co-
operation Commission
through a Border 2020 Pro-
gram grant, the city of
Nogales, Sonora, developed
in August 2016 its
PROAIRE, a strategy to
reduce air pollution based
on a detailed analysis of lo-
cal emissions sources, mete-
orology, air quality, potential
pollution controls, and oth-
er considerations. The
PROAIRE program recom-
mends thirteen planned
measures including
strengthening regulations
for commercial establish-
ments, reducing dust from
paved and unpaved roads,
implementing a vehicle
emissions testing program,
strengthening the ambient
air quality monitoring sys-
tem, and developing an en-
vironmental education pro-
gram. The PROAIRE also
establishes goals and indica-
tors for each measure. The
measures, goals, and indica-
tors were developed by a
"Core Committee" of envi-
ronmental, planning, and
development professionals
representing Mexican local,
state, and federal govern-
ment as well as the academ-
ic sector. Architect David
Cuauhtemoc Galindo Del-
gado, Mayor of Nogales,
leads the Committee. The
PROAIRE document was
developed with the guidance
of die Core Committee by a
Border 2020 Program grant-
ee who had previously de-
veloped an emissions inven-
tory of \ogak-s with sup-
port of the Border 2020
Program, which helped to
inform the focuses of the
PROAIRE program.
The inventory con-
sidered die sources of emis-
sions including PMia
(inhalable particles, with
diameters diat are 10 mi-
crometers and smaller) and
I'M..:.-, (fine inhalable parti-
cles, widi diameters diat are
2.5 micrometers and small-
er). The inventory showed
that in Nogales 87 percent
of PMffl emissions and over
half of die I'M--, emissions
were from paved and un-
paved roads, and almost half
of the PM2.5 emissions were
from wildfires. Wildfires
were also found to be die
principal cause of sulfur
dioxide (SO2) emissions.
Emission of carbon monox-
ide (CO) and nitrogen ox-
ides (NOx) were attributed
to: motor vehicles in
Nogales and emissions of
ammonia (NHj) were found
to come from livestock.
Nogales, Sonora, a city of
250,000 inhabitants is di-
rectly across the border
from; Nogales, Arizona. Alt-
hough Nogales, Arizona, is
in non-attainment widi the
health-based national ambi-
ent air quality standards for
PM10, the State has demon-
strated diat it would be in
attainment "but for" emis-
sions from Nogales, Sonora.
Aspects of the work, during the vehicular activity identification stage in Nogales,
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PAGE 7 HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Improving air quality monitoring in Ojinaga.
The municipality of
Ojinaga, Chihuahua, re-
ceived a grant for approxi-
mately $14,327 USD to help
address improving air quali-
ty monitoring for PMio* The
funded project helped to
establish and provide ade-
quate maintenance and cali-
bration of existing air quality
monitoring equipment the
city owned and established a
mechanism for informing
the public of the adverse
health impacts from expo-
sure to PMia.
The grant helped to
fund the replacements parts
and maintenance needed for
three PMio monitors. Addi-
tionally, three training
events were conducted for
air quality technicians from
Ojinaga. Staff from the De-
partment of Renewable En-
ergy and Environmental
Protection that is part of the
Center for Advanced Mate-
rials Investigation .(TMAY.
by its acronym in Spanish)
in Chihuahua conducted the
training. Technical opera-
tors were trained in the im-
portance of monitoring
PMio, as well as, given
demonstrations and proper
training for upkeep, mainte-
nance and calibration of the
monitors.
Through these
trainings, city staff were able
to setup and establish a rig-
orous calibration schedule
as follows: 1) upon installa-
tion; 2) after performing
maintenance to the vacuum;
3) once every three months
and; 4) after 360 hours after
sampling. The project also
helped city staff develop a
communication plan to in-
form the 26,000 inhabitants
of Ojinaga of instances
when PM is above regulato-
ry standards.
The training events provided by staff from CJNLA.V,
Prioritizing emissions mitigation strategies at the Mariposa Port-of-
Entry.
Millions of vehicles
cross between Mexico; and
the United States each year
and long queues of idling
vehicles are a common sight
at ports-of-entry (POEs). In
2014, the 25 land border
crossings from Mexico into
the U.S. processed 5.4 mil-
lion heavy-duty vehicles
(HDVs), 2.1 million buses
and 6.96 million light duty
vehicles (LDVs). While the
volume of traffic at POEs
presents significant environ-
mental and health challeng-
es to the air quality in the
vicinity of the ports, oppor-
tunities exist to reduce these
emissions, in the short-term,
mid-term, and long-term.
Under a Border 2020 Pro-
gram grant sponsored by
the USEPA and the Border
Environment Cooperation
Commission, researchers at
Arizona State University
assessed emissions from
northbound vehicles at the
Mariposa PQE between
Nogales, Sonora, and
Nogak-s. Arizona, and mod-
eled die effects of potential
emission reduction strate-
gies.
The researchers
used historical information
from the U.S. Bureau of
Transportation Statistics as
well as field data (including
Volume, service time and
speed distributions) ob-
tained from a two-day data
collection at the port to es-
tablish a simulation model
in VISSI \1 7.0, a microscop-
ic multi-modal traffic flow
simulation software pack-
age. The results from VIS-
SIM are input to MOVES
(Motor Vehicle Emission
Simulator), a state-of-the-art
emission modeling software
developed by USEPA, to
analyze emissions. The
study considered emissions
of Nitrogen Oxides (NOx),
Particulate Matter less than
2.5 microns (PM2.5), Sulfur
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 8
Dioxide (SO2), Carbon
Monoxide (CO), and Nan-
Methane Hydrocarbons
(NMHC), as well as green-
house gas emissions
(GHG).
The researchers
assessed various short and
long-term steps to mitigate
future emission increases at
tin- Mariposa PGE. As ex-
pected, quantities of emis-
sions at the Mariposa I'OH
were found to vary based on
the traffic volume, wait
time, vehicle types, fuel
types, vehicle age and the
pollutant being considered.
Key findings included:
• Increases in traffic vehicle
volumes result in non-
linear increases in waiting
times and all emissions
analyzed. Doubling traffic
volumes would be ex-
pected to result in in-
creased emissions be-
tween 2 times to nearly 4
times.
• Opening all primary in-
spection lanes results in a
13 percent reduction in
emissions for PM2.5,
NOx, and NMHC and an
approximately 30 percent
reduction in GHGs, S02,
and CO.
• Expanding enrollment in
EAST1 from the current
baseline of 10%: up to
20%, results in emissions
savings between 4-11
percent across pollutants.
• Sulfur in fuel can impede
the efficiency of emission
control devices for other
pollutants. In the fuel
sensitivity analysis, using
higher sulfur fuel increas-
es non-sulfur emissions
by 55% for LDY and up
to 20% for HDV.
• Updating HDV and LDY
to latest models results in
95 percent reduction for
PM2.5, MOx, and
NMHC; an 81 percent
reduction for CD; and a
15 percent reduction for
GHGs and SD2.
• If all LDYs were
switched to electric vehi-
cles (EVs) and all HDVs
were switched to com-
pressed natural gas
(CNG), emissions could
be reduced 93-99 percent
across all pollutants at the
POB,
PM2.5 (g)
XOOO
4,500
4.000
3.500
a 2.500
2.000
1 ..->00
1.000
Base Base x2 Base x3
GHG (kg)
53 25,000
.2 15.000
Base Base x2 Base x3
NO, (g)
Base Base x2 Base x3
S02 (g)
Base Base x2 Base x3
NMHC (g)
Base Base x2 Base x3
CO (g)
Base Base x2 Base x3
- HHD ¦ MHD ¦ LDV mBus
Hxample of the data found by the study: Hmission Changes from Increased Vehicle Volumes,
1 The Free and Secure Trade (FAST) program is a Federal U.S. commercial clearance program for known low-risk shipments entering the United States from Canada and
Mexico that allows expedited processing for commercial carriers who have completed background checks and fulfill certain eligibility requirements.
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PAGE 9
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
New Mexico-Chihuahua border study on air quality.
The State of Chi-
huahua Department of
Health in coordination with
die Autonomous University
of Ciudad Juarez (UACJ, by
its acronym in Spanish) was
awarded a Border 2020 Pro-
gram grant of $28,725 DSD
to conduct a study that
looked at getting a better
understanding of the causes
and sources of particulate
matter (PM) in air pollution
in the Paso del SJorte region
that impact public health.
The grant helped support a
portion of a much larger
project funded by the New
Mexico Department of
Health, Office of Border
Health, that funded the pro-
ject from 2010-2013.
The project looked
at: 1) measuring PM con-
centrations from unpaved
road dust at several loca-
tions in Juarez, Chihuahua,
2) collecting dust samples
during spring dust storm
events in Juarez, 3) evaluat-
ing a precipitation predic-
tion model along the border-
using inexpensive rain gaug-
es and 4) inventorying geo-
spatial data layers that are
useful for calculating pollu-
tant emissions inventories.
In addition, since there is no
air monitoring in Palomas,
Chihuahua, a smaller study
was conducted there to look
at estimating PMta emis-
sions from vehicles traveling
on the unpaved roads.
The project spon-
sors found that PM during
natural dust storms were
associated to low soil mois-
ture, fine sand soil texture,
and unpaved roads. The
experiment revealed that die
PM concentrations were
more heavily affected by
vehicle speeds on unpaved
roads as opposed to variant
wind speeds. The project
portion diat took place in
Palomas estimated that po-
tentially 268 tons (it' I'M;., is
generated per year from
vehicles traveling on the
unpaved roads there, how-
ever, diere is still the poten-
tial for additional tons of
PM to be generated from
wind erosion and also taking
into account tail pipe emis-
sions from the vehicle en-
gines.
Based on die results
of this study, particulate
matter exposures from un-
paved roads remain a healdi
concern in die study area
widi further studies needed
to evaluate other factors
diat may be contributing to
PM emissions. There is a
need to continue support
work to quantify wind ero-
sion from disturbed and
undisturbed vacant lands
across die region, as well as,
to quantify the dust flux
across areas in the Chihua-
liuan Desert, as very little
research in this area has
been done. Finally, since
there are very few precipita-
tion measurements in Chi-
huahua and they are im-
portant for assessing and
predicting drought and dust,
it is recommended that
more observing locations be
started.
Instruments used to measure PM from dust
storms, and for experiments in unpaved roads,
Sampling points at the communities 0/Ramon Rayon, Gome2 Morin and Las Torres in Juare^.
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 10
GOAL 2: IMPROVE ACCESS TO CLEAN AND SAFE WATER
Management of fat, oil and grease in Nuevo Laredo.
A Border 2020 Pro-
gram grant of $32,533 USD
was awarded to the Munici-
pal Commission of Potable
Water and Sewer of the City
o f M u e v o Laredo
(( X MAP A, by its acronym
in; Spanish) to help address
the issues of fats and oils in
there sewage system.
The technicians at
CQMAPA no-
ticed that the
municipal drain-
age system con-
tinually had ob-
structions from
the presence of
animal fat or
vegetable oils.
The grant helped
to address the needs of edu-
cating local businesses with:
state and local laws regard-
ing wastewater; education
on the proper pre-treatment
equipment needed at their
business to deal with used
oil/grease; and provide al-
ternative solutions to the
disposal of such waste. An-
other goal was to help es-
tablish used oil and grease
collection centers to proper-
ly handle the collection of
these from businesses and
alleviate issues associated
with excessive grease and
oils in the wastewater drain-
age system.
The project spon-
sors were able to achieve
their goals through meetings
with the local university,
Technological University
(UT, by its acronym in
Spanish), through conduct-
ing training and implement-
ing the appropriate infra-
structure for the grease
traps. Information was pre-
sented to the public via tele-
vision, newsprint, radio and
social media on the im-
Urban keyhole gardens rainwater-harvesting techniques.
The El Paso Water-
Utilities received a Border
2020 Program grant of ap-
proximately $6,000 USD to
help demonstrate that urban
landscapes can incorporate
small-scale intensive grow-
ing beds to grow a variety of
plants utilizing rainfall or
runoff, supplemented by
very little irrigation. The
project is part of a larger
effort of the El Paso Water-
Utilities thru the "The Ur-
ban Keyhole Gardens" of
the Tech 11 •(') Water Re-
sources Learning Center.
The project helped show-
case to the public that by
incorporating simple and
efficient techniques, they
themselves can create a mul-
tipurpose garden at home as
a source of vegetables and
fruits to improve nutrition,
especially for children. The
project scope entailed estab-
lishing two permanent key-
hole gardens and a 1,600 sq.
ft. fruit orchard site. In addi-
tion to the establishment of
the gardens, the project fo-
cused on public outreach
workshops and training
workshops, as well as, edu-
cation sessions with stu-
dents from die community.
The initial stages of
the project including prepa-
ration of die site that includ-
ed fencing the area of use,
clearing debris and weeds,
followed by die installation
of a drip irrigation system
widi water meters. The sec-
ond step initiated the con-
struction of die keyhole gar-
den structures. Thereafter,
the planting of fruits and
vegetables were completed
by children attending sum-
mer camp activities. A total
of 20 trees were planted,
along widi vegetables diat
included: winter crops such
as broccoli, Chinese cab-
bage, celery, kale and regular-
cabbage; and summer crops
that included cherry toma-
toes, basil, string beans, cu-
cumbers, sugar snaps and
melons. The education and
community outreach came
in the form of school and
community group field trips
and a few demonstrations
that were open to the pub-
lic.
The project demon-
strated that rainwater-
harvesting techniques ulti-
mately help conserve water-
in the border region of l-.l
Paso-Ciudad Juarez. It also
portance of proper disposal
of waste grease and/or oil in
order to prevent blockages
in the drainage infrastruc-
ture. Local businesses were
educated on die proper dis-
posal of grease and oil
through a number of work-
shops held throughout the
city. At the end of the pro-
ject, 449 local businesses (3
persons per business) were
provided widi die necessary
tools to establish procedures
for proper disposal, as well
as, strengdiening die com-
munication widi its employ-
ees on the regulations and
procedures. In addition, 13
businesses installed the oil
and grease traps for their
busmess.
provided public education
regarding composting pro-
cesses diat would alleviate
landfill waste. The gardens
remain open to die public
during events for children
and workshops for die pub-
lic. A total of 14 workshops,
training and education ses-
sions were held to reach
over 956 community mem-
bers.
Vartkipants at one of the tmining workshops held in Nuew Laredo,
One of the keyhole gardens constructed,
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PAGE 11
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Border2020 Program supports the restoration of the Tijuana River.
The Tijuana River with the Abelardo L. Rodrigue2 dam in the background,
The region of the
Tijuana River basin is inter-
nationally recognized for its
diversity and as the habitat
for important groups of
endemic flora and fauna.
This basin covers 4,430
kma, Willi two thirds of it
located in Mexico and a
third part in the USA. The
Tijuana River has a length
of 195 km, starring south of
Tijuana, Baja California,
with its estuary in southern
California a few kilometers
from the Mexico-US border.
Its main tributaries in Mexi-
co are the Alamar River and
the river system Las Paforas
(this river system feeds the
water reservoir of the A-be-
tardo L. Rodrlgm* dam) while
in the United States its main
tributary is the Cottonwood
Creek system. Through the
city of Tijuana, the river
runs in a concrete channel
to the border.
With die support of
the Border 2020 Program,
Vronatura Moroeste (a non-
profit organization based in
the city of Ensenada, Baja
California) worked on a pro-
ject designed to restore a 3
km stretch of the Tijuana
River in the area down-
stream of the Mbehrdo L.
Rodriguez dam, the only sec-
tion of the river not chan-
nelized with concrete. The
project included the regen-
eration of the riparian eco-
system of the river along
with the recovery of natural
spaces for recreation and
environmental education of
the community. The project
included:
• Inventorying the birds
and seasonal vegetation
(35 different species of
birds were identified);
• Removal of 238 tons of
garbage, debris, sediment
and invasive vegetation;
• The reforestation with
106 willow tree cuttings;
• Hydrological modeling
and design of hydrologi-
cal modifications that w7ill
allow river flows to infil-
trate into an aquifer while
not flooding nearby
structures;
• An agreement from the
State and Federal Water
Commissions of Mexico
to dedicate 30% of the
treated effluent of the
nearby wastewater treat-
ment plants for river res-
toration;
• Two educational videos
about the river that can
be found in this link: and
• Outreach activities, in-
cluding participation in
Tijuana's 2015 Environ-
mental Pair, a photo-
graphic exhibition, and a
volunteer trash cleanup
day.
It is important to;
highlight that an agreement
between Vronatura Noroeste
and the National Water
Commission of Mexico was
reached, which will allow
the protection and conser-
vation of this area of the
Tijuana River for 30 years.
In collaboration
with the Border 2020 Pro-
gram, the Municipality of
Tijuana, Baja California's
State Government and Fed-
eral Government of Mexico,
Vronatura Moroeste is planning
the second stage of this pro-
ject for die recovery and
conservation of die Tijuana
River ecosystem.
^4 section of the Tijuana River basin before the start of the work and another section after the restoration activities.
Planting the willow tree cuttings,
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 12
Conservation of the Arroyo Las Vacas in Ac una.
The Border 2020
Program awarded a grant of
$44,24X3 USD to the Secre-
tariat of Environmental for
the State of Coahuila
(SEMA, by its acronym m
Spanish) towards the con-
servation of die Arroyo Las
Vacas (River Las Yacas) in
the municipality of Acuna,
Coahuila. The project pro-
posed to design and imple-
ment actions to improve
water quality and support a
suitable habitat for the local
plants and wildlife by bring-
ing together educational
institutions and business
associations to work togeth-
er. Partners included rl to
Technological Institute of
Acuna City (ITSA, by its
acronym in Spanish), Mu-
nicipality of Acuna, the Uni-
versity of Texas at Austin,
EPA's National Risk Man-
agement Research Labora-
tory :(NRMRL), the Texas
Commission on Environ-
mental Quality and BBCC.
The objectives of
the project included docu-
menting the broader ecosys-
tem of the river's flora and
fauna indigenous to the ar-
ea, Clean-up and reforesta-
tion events aimed at conser-
vation were conducted by
binational universities and
businesses. Additionally,
outreach was conducted
towards the community to
increase consciousness of
the preservation of the river
and its potential for recrea-
tional uses.
Overall the project
accomplishments included:
1) the establishment of a
binational working group
comprised of United States
and Mexico Federal, State,
local governments as well as
academic institutions; 2)
diagnostic survey of the riv-
er; and 3) implementation of
five binational conservation
programs that included wa-
ter quality monitoring, in-
ventory of flora and fauna,
identification of point
sources of contamination,
enforcement and reforesta-
tion.
Through the pro-
ject over 441 species of flora
and fauna were registered,
with approximately 31 of
them identified on the Pro-
tected Species list under
Mexican Law (NOM-059-
SEMARNAT-20 10 law).
The project encouraged the
participation of utilizing
university students to con-
duct some Of die surveys
and sampling of the river.
Results of die diagnostics
survey of the river were pre-
sented at a workshop at-
tended by 35 participants
representing 14 different
institutions. In addition,
during the project 35
wastewater discharges into
the river were documented
and through the identifica-
tion of 14 illegal activities
along die river, 3 enforce-
ment actions against indus-
try took place. The project
included a river clean-up
event with die reforestation
of over 225 native trees.
Next steps include the es-
tablishment of a more per-
manent working group that
will continue to do clean-up
and conservations efforts of
the river.
ARROYO LAS VACAS
C I U D A D
A C U fi A
DIA MUNDIAL DE LOS HUMEDALES
Te invitamos a celebrar
el Dfa Mundial de los Humedales
en la ribera del Arroyo las Vacas.
Llevaremos a cabo una campana
de reforestacion y de limpieza.
j^ENERGA
Coahuila
One of the posters of the public campaign to promote the
conservation of the River Las Vacas,
Varticipants of the reforestation
One section of the River Las Vacas bfore and after the clean-up event,
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PAGE 13
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Border2020 Program supports development of a sediment model for
Tijuana watershed sub-basin.
it Biggs from SDSU and Napoleon Gudino of CICHSH measure channel
erosion,
During stnrm
events in Tijuana large gul-
lies form in unpaved roads
of die city which make them
impassable, access to trash
collection and emergency
services unreliable and
buildings susceptible to col-
lapse. These gullies also pro-
duce massive sediment
loads that feed into the Ti-
juana River Estuary,, located
just north of the border.
The U.S. spends approxi-
mately $3M annually to re-
move trash-laden sediment
from the Tijuana River Val-
ley and Estuary. Efforts to
control sediment and trash
inflow into the estuary often
prove inadequate, resulting
in destruction of wetlands,
flooding throughout the
Tijuana River Valley, and
hydrologic conversion of
saltwater to freshwater
marsh.
The Tijuana Na-
tional Estuarine Research
Reserve (TRNI RR is the
last coastal wetlands in
southern California not bi-
sected by a freeway or rail-
road. Considered a wetland
of international importance
by the United Nations, it
provides habitat to nearly
400 species of birds. The
River and Estuary are listed
by the State of California as
"impaired" due to sediment
and trash under 303(d): of
the Clean Water Act. How-
ever, because most of the
sediment comes from Mexi-
co, the State of California
cannot address the pollution
through a regulatory ap-
proach and State officials
have frequently reached out
to the U.S. Government for
help. As a result of these
requests, the reduction of
sediment and trash into the
Tijuana Estuary was identi-
fied as a top priority in the
Border 2020 Program.,: Fur-
thermore, the recently
adopted U.S. Mexico Treaty
Minute 320 aims specifically
to reduce sediment and
trash in the Tijuana River
Watershed through hi
national collaboration. The
U.S. and Mexican Commis-
sioners of the International
Boundary and Water Com-
mission (IBWC) signed this
"Minute", which is an ad-
dendum to the 1944 Colora-
do River Water Treaty be-
tween U.S. and Mexico, in
September of 2015.
San Diego State
University researchers from
die Department of Geogra-
phy and die Ensenada Cen-
ter for Scientific Research
and Higher Education
(CICESE, by its acronym in
Spanish), with assistance
from scientists from
USDA's Agricultural Re-
search Service, the L'SKl'A
Office of Research and De-
velopment and USEPA Re-
gion 9 Office developed a
sophisticated model that
couples a hillslope runoff
and sediment production
model (Agricultural Non-
Point Source Pollution
Model or "AGNPS'*) with a
channel routing and erosion
model (Conservational
Channel Evolution and Pol-
lutant Transport System or
"CONCEPTS"). Widi the
coupled model and field
observations, including aeri-
al images taken from a
drone, the research has:
• Identified erosion
hotspots in the sub-basin,
including soil types that
are vulnerable to erosion
and gullying;
• Established diat sheet
and rill erosion on vacant
lots and roads are signifi-
cant sources of sediment
along with gully for-
mation and channel ero-
sion;;
• Estimated die watershed-
Scale impact of different
management actions
(such as paving all roads);
• Identified key locations
that would be ideal tar-
gets for implementation
of best management prac-
tices;
• Provided hydrographs to
University of California at
Irvine for their 2-D flood
model; and
• Informed government
officials in Mexico and
the U.S. of findings via
numerous workshops.
Results from die
model suggest that paving
all the roads in the sub-
basin could reduce sediment
loads across die border by
40o/o. Widespread road-
paving, however, in Los
Laureks (aka, "Goat Can-
yon") is unlikely in the near
future due to die high cost.
Furthermore, road-paving
widi impervious asphalt or
concrete will increase peak
flows in die transboundary
river by 20®% resulting in a
greater increase in flooding
potential on bodi sides of
die border. The complete
findings will be published in
2017.
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 14
United States-Mexico Border Water Infrastructure Program.
The U.S.-Mexico
Border Water Infrastructure
(BWIP) Program funds the
planning, design, and con-
struction of high priority
water and wastewater infra-
structure for underserved
border communities. The
Program protects public
health and the environment
by funding essential drink-
ing water and wastewater
projects that otherwise
would be financially unfeasi-
ble for these communities,
eliminating untreated sew-
age discharges and improv-
ing the quality of surface
and groundwater essential
to the border area, The
BWIP is the only federal
program that can fund infra-
structure projects on both
sides of the border and one
of the few federal programs
that provides technical assis-
tance for planning and de-
sign of drinking water and
sanitation projects.
In the border re-
gion, close proximity and
significant intermingling of
populations poses a serious
risk of disease exposure and
transmission as a result of
unsafe drinking water and
inadequate sanitation. The
BWIP helps reduce the po-
tential for cross border dis-
ease exposure protecting the
environment and public
health. BWIP projects have
reduced discharges of or-
ganic waste by more than
143 million pounds per year
into transboundary surface
waters and groundwater.
Removal of other contami-
nants, such as suspended
solids, toxic ammonia, nutri-
ents and pathogens, has
improved water quality at
beaches and in rivers
throughout the border re-
gion.
Many residents of
small, economically dis-
tressed communities along
the U.S. Mexico border
have inadequate or no ac-
cess to basic drinking water
and sanitation. These com-
munities often lack the re-
sources to plan and secure
construction funding of
critically needed infrastruc-
ture. The BWIP provides
financial and technical assis-
tance so these communities
can afford access to safe
drinking water and
wastewater infrastructure,
reducing disproportionate
public health risks and envi-
ronmental impact from raw
sewage discharges. BWIP
technical assistance provides
hands-on management and
technical oversight for plan-
ning, engineering, environ-
mental review and design
becoming a critical bridge
between proposed projects
and their construction.
Case Study /example
Colonia Las Pam-
pas is an economically dis-
tressed community of ap-
proximately 6,500 residents
with no access to viable wa-
ter supply sources and for
years, its residents have
been hauling water from the
city of Presidio, Texas, for
their basic water needs so
the city has applied for
BWIP funding to extend
water services to Colonia
Las Pampas. BWIP efforts
included a water use audit,
which showed the city was
facing high levels of water
loss, failing infrastructure
and low billing rates requir-
ing supplemental funding.
BWIP is assisting Presidio
with the planning and de-
sign of critical rehabilitation
of the existing system and
expansion of water lines to
bring safe drinking water to
approximately 30 homes in
Colonia Las Pampas. Once
planning and design is com-
plete, Presidio will be able
to apply for construction
funding, which is estimated
at $870,000 USD.
The BWIP is an
integral component of the
Border 2020 Program; in
2015 provided first time
access to safe drinking water
to more than 800 border
homes and wastewater col-
lection and treatment ser-
vices to more than 44,000
homes. Since 3003, the
BWIP has provided first-
time access to safe drinking
water to approximately
65,600 homes and first-time
access to wastewater collec-
tion and treatment services
to more than 626,000
homes.
resident of the colony L,as Pampas receives drinking waterfrom a pipe truck,
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PAGE 15
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
GOAL 3: PROMOTE MATERIALS AND WASTE MANAGEMENT
AND CLEAN SITES
Waste generation diagnostic for the Northeast Border Region.
The Secretary of
Sustainable Development of
the State of Nuevo Leon
was the recipient of a grant
in the amount of $21,798
USD for the purpose of
developing a diagnostic pre-
diction model of generated
solid waste in the Northeast
region utilizing sampling
from one of the communi-
ties in order to better under-
stand the waste generation
in die region and help devel-
op stronger solid waste
management plans.
The 12-month long
project consisted of con-
ducting a seven-day study in
204 homes in Sabinas Hidal-
go, Nuevo Leon, within
three socioeconomic groups
(high, low, and very low)
according to Mexican stand-
ards. The study aided in
creating a dataset to help
understand the generation
of urban waste. A prediction
model for municipal solid
waste generation was devel-
oped and its data reliability
was tested based on the mu-
nicipality under study. The
data was also used for verifi-
cation purposes of the pre-
diction model based on the
socioeconomic variables.
The seven munici-
palities modeled were Jkna-
hmc, Bustamante, China, Ham-
pa^ps de Namtyo, GeuemlBra-
vo, Gewraneran and Sabinas
Hidalgo. The waste was clas-
sified into seven different
materials in order to make
accurate percentages of
household waste within the
categories of plastic, glass,
paper, cardboard, alumi-
num, metal, organic and
others.
Once the model
was tested, a projection of
the next ten years was creat-
ed with respect to waste
output and type. The largest
reported waste across all
three socioeconomic groups
was the 'organic and other'
category accounting for
57% of total waste, with
plastic coming in as the sec-
ond most produced waste at
17.5% (see graph for full
percentages). The final out-
come of the project helped
to create a management plan
focused on plastics and their
utilization, Lastly, a program
guide for integrated waste
management was developed.
5.54% °-59% 4.28%
4.52%
AVERAGE PERCENTAGE BY
TYPE OF WASTE
17.48%
6.81%
57.10%
Aluminum Glass Plastic ¦ Paperboard Organic Paper Metal Others
-------
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 16
Building capacity to safely and efficiently manage electronic waste in
Mexicali.
IE
7
LJ_J
Recolectra'
Pitigrama de Acopioy Recidaje Electronico
VICENTE
GUERRERO
12-13 DICIEMBRE
)UVENTUD ^
GYMBOReei
23-24 ENERO
PARQUE
' CENTENARIO
20-21 FEBRERO
TRAETUS MATERIALES C0M0:
Impresoras, Ordenadores personales y portatiles (CPU, raton,
pantalla y tedado) Pequenos dispositivos portatiles, Tabletas
electronicas Fotocopiadoras y Televisiones.
H0RARI0S DE ATENCION DE 1:00 PM A 5:00 PM
Tel. (686) 218-11-20 • Cel. (686) 242-91-00
3
O /fiindacionhelice • www.recolectra.com
5 H — TOM - EPA I
Poster for the public campaign Recolectra,
Hie city of Mexicali, Baja
California, is one of the stra-
tegic points for the com-
mercial exchange between
Mexico and the United
States. Similarly, Mexicali is
amongst the Mexican bor-
der cities with the largest
number of Maquiladora in-
dustries. These two charac-
teristics contribute to: the
region having both im-
portant quantities of new
electronics purchased and
electronic discarded. Elec-
tronic discards, otherwise
known as e-waste, often
accumulate in homes and
ultimately is discarded into
landfills or worse, illegally
dumped. Furthermore, the
informal sector markets,
often take the most valuable
components, such as metal
circuit boards, under unsafe
conditions. To address
worker safety and public
health and environmental
risks associated with e-
waste, the Border 2020 Pro-
gram has supported efforts
to build public awareness
about these concerns and
promote the use of certified
recyclers and best manage-
ment practices.
Under the Border 2020 Pro-
gram, Vundacion He&x ¦
implemented a project in
the city of Mexicali to
achieve the following objec-
tives:
• Train regional electronic
recyclers on international
certifications offered by
R2 and e-Stewards, with
die overall goal to in-
crease adoption of best
practices and ultimately
increase the number of
certified electronic recy-
clers,
• Increase public aware-
ness about worker safety
and public and environ-
mental risks of e-waste
through a local communi-
cation campaign,
RECQLECTRA, includ-
ing public schools in
Mexicali about e-waste
issues and importance of
diverting e-waste from
landfills to recyclers who
can appropriately manage
them.
• Implement neighborhood
e-waste collection events
to facilitate the appropri-
ate disposition of discard-
ed electronics.
Vtmdacidn llilice com-
pleted two workshops with
59 persons from recycling
enterprises, electronic gen-
erators, university institu-
tions, environmental con-
sultants, and state and local
government agencies. Over
a period of five months,
they reached 100 thousand
people not only in the city
of Mexicali, but also in the
city of Calexico, California.
Finally, through the e-waste
collection RECOLECTRA
campaign, they collected 21
tons of discarded electronics
that was processed by two
recycling enterprises, recov-
ering valuable plastic, print-
ed circuits, precious metals,
and other materials for re-
use.
One of the workshopsfor recycling enterprises and electronic generators,
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PAGE 17
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Bio solids recycling agriculture at Juarez valley.
' J.V
Si wheat field in San Isidro, Judre3, On the left, the control field where traditionalfertilisers were used,
Sit the right, the field fertilised with biosolids.
The Autonomous
University of Gudad Juarez
(UACJ, by its acronym in
Spanish) received a Border
2020 Program grant for
$44,850 USD to conduct
research pertaining to bio-
solid recycling in agricultural
soils in the Juarez Valley in
Chihuahua. Currently, the
two main wastewater treat-
ment plants in Ciudad Jua-
rez produce on average
91m3 annually of sewage
and 105,000m3 of biosolids.
The final disposal of the
sewage sludge is the munici-
pal landfill, just south of the
city.
The project objec-
tives included the develop-
ment of a program that
would encourage agriculture
farmers in the Juarez Valley
to adopt using the
wastewater plant's biosolids
into their agricultural fields,
in particular using the appli-
cation of bio-solids for cot-
ton or sorghum during the
summer months and wheat
or oats during the winter
months. Another objective
was to organize a demon-
stration camp for agricultur-
ists and technicians regard-
ing proper applications of
the bio-solids in agricultural
field. The project looked at
creating a Committee on
Bio-solids Utilization (CUB,
by its acronym in Spanish)
to create a group that would
help oversee and ensure the
availability and proper use
of biosolids.
The project helped
prove that the biosolid
waste can be used as an or-
ganic form of fertilizer for
the Juarez Valley. Approxi-
mately 25 thousand cubic
meters of biosolids were
utilized during the project;
demonstrated on 100 hec-
tares in 2015 and 500 hec-
tares in 2016.
Several important
steps resulted from the
study: 1) volunteers found a
link between residual waters
and biosolid delivery to the
fields; 2) a registry was de-
veloped of new participants
and their land parcels that
would implement the use of
bio-solids in their fields; and
3) the creation of the CUB
committee, which will con-
tinue to communicate the
effectiveness of biosolids in
agriculture to stakeholders
through several avenues of
communication.
Tire amnesty collection events in El Paso County.
Illegal dumping of
scrap tires in El Paso has
long been a problem, as it is
along various regions along
the U.S.-Mexico Border.
Often rogue tire transport-
ers bypass the legal and reg-
ulated process of properly
disposing scrap tires and
choose to dump them in the
Open desert, irrigation ca-
nals, drainage system and
vacant properties. These
illegal scrap tire piles often
create the perfect breeding
grounds for rodents and
mosquitos that pose the
threat of several mosquito-
borne illnesses. Some of the
illnesses related to mosqui-
tos are Malaria, Chikungu-
nya, Dog Heartworm, Den-
gue, Yellow Fever, Eastern
Equine Encephalitis, St.
Louis Encephalitis, L&-
Crosse Encephalitis, West-
ern Equine Encephalitis,
West Kfile Virus and Zika
Virus.
The El Paso Coun-
ty Water Improvement Dis-
trict NO. 1 jfepCWIDl) re-
ceived a Border 2020 Pro-
gram grant for $15,000 USD
to fund tire amnesty collec-
tion events in El Paso
County, Texas. The project
sponsored two events for
free tire drop offs in order
to deter illegal dumping.
The objective of the project
helped to clear unsightly
debris, protect groundwater,
reduce crossing of tires to
Mexico for resale, and most
importantly to prevent the
spread of diseases. The two
events were held oil April
12, 2014 and April 26, 2014
in Canutillo, Texas. The
events were widely promot-
ed with flyers and press re-
leases in print, including
newspapers. Approximately
12,000 scrap tires were col-
lected and sent for proper
disposal and recycling by a
certified hauler. The
EPCWID1 hopes to hold
more events as needed, for
example, when illegal dump-
ing becomes noticeable,
and/or possibly turning into
an annual event.
Community members dropping off their scrap tires forproper disposal and recycling
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 18
Tools to help Arizona border communities reclaim resources.
The illegal dumping
of electronics results in the
release of toxic chemicals
into the air, soil, and water
as they deteriorate and
break down and can be ab-
sorbed by the human body
through inhaling polluted
air, drinking contaminated
water or consuming food
tainted from the chemicals
seeping into the soil. The
consumption of such chem-
icals can create several
health conditions including
increased asthma, respirato-
ry problems and potentially
cancer. This potential haz-
ard has led to a statewide
effort in Arizona to collect e
-waste by encouraging the
communities to recycle re-
sponsibly.
The Arizona De-
partment of Environmental
Quality (ADEQ) was
awarded a Border 2020 Pro-
gram grant to develop an e-
waste toolkit, referred to as
"Tools to Help Arizona
Border Communities Re-
claim Resources" as well as
provide training to partici-
pating communities on how
to utilize the toolkit to run a
successful e-waste collection
event.
The projects prima-
ry objective was to reclaim
valuable resources and re-
duce the electronics from
going to Arizona landfills or
being illegally dumped. This
objective was accomplished
by the following activities:
• Develop and implement a
web-based bilingual
toolkit designed to pro-
vide municipalities with
certified e-waste recycler
contacts, marketing sup-
plies, educational re-
sources and best practices
to run a successful e-
waste event;
• Support communities in
holding e-waste collection
events, using the toolkit
to: create a series of annu-
al e-waste events;
• Promote use of certified
recyclers to safely and
efficiently recycle discard-
ed electronics; and
• Increase the number of e-
waste events in the bor-
der region.
Thru this project,
ADEQ strengthened the
State e-waste recycling pro-
gram. The E-waste Recy-
cling Events Toolkit was
used by six cities to imple-
ment their own e-waste
event and for some of the
cities this was their first ever
e-waste recycling event. A
total of 21 participants took
part in the Br waste Recy-
cling Events Toolkit train-
ings and helped organize six
e-waste events that collected
a total of 63,656 pounds of
electronics.
Electronics collected during one of the e-waste recycling events,
Ysleta del Sur Pueblo Community Collection Center.
The Ysleta Del Sur
Pueblo (YDSP) Environ-
mental and Natural Re-
sources Department
03NRD) received a Border
2020 Program grant for
f66,670 USD to help estab-
lish a community collection
center for the Tigua com-
munity. The project also
provided educational mate-
rials to the tribal community
on the proper handling and
disposal of hazardous waste
products and appropriate
recycling practices.
The project includ-
ed 33 clean up and mitiga-
tion activities that included:
tire amnesty, flood mitiga-
tion, recycling bin cleanups,
e-waste collection and alu-
minum can collections that
are not normally offered in
the area, The ENRD had
several amnesty tire events
in which residents were able
to turn in used tires without
having to pay a disposal fee
charge. During the length of
the project, the ENRD was
able to collect a total of 250
tires.
Additionally, 225
homes in the District II
Tribal residency received
recycling collection bins,
with additional bins set out
throughout the community,
helping to increase partici-
pation of recycling. The
project saw a successful e-
waste collection of over
10,800 pounds and a collec-
tion of 5,420 pounds of re-
cycled material. The chal-
lenge encountered during
the project's 18-month peri-
od was the accumulation of
unrecyclable waste in the
recycle bins.
Another challenge
encountered during the pro-
ject period was that as a
recycling commodity, the B-
waste market was very vola-
tile such that instead of it
becoming a source :of reve-
nue for the Tribe, became
an expenditure.
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PAGE 19
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Capacity building in the management of hazardous wastes in
Nogales.
Improperly disposed
used motor oil, considered a
hazardous waste in Mexico,
contributes to environmental
contamination of our land
and waterways. To address
the threats posed by misman-
aged motor oil, the Border
2020 Program awarded a
grant to the Secretariat for
Urban Development and
Ecology (SEDER, by its ac-
ronym in Spanish) of
Nogales., Sonora to build ca-
pacity through training and
infrastructure to collect small
quantity generators' motor oil
and facilitate its recycling.
This program included the
following activities:
• Train owners and manag-
ers of small quantity gener-
ators (micro-generators,
less than 400 kg/yr) auto
shops on regulatory re-
quirements and proper
management of used oil;
• Increase public awareness
of the potential environ-
mental impacts and proper
management practices; and
• Develop infrastructure to
facilitate collection of used
motor oil from small quan-
tity generators.
Through this grant,
MOgales has been able to fur-
ther train 80% of those used
motor oil generators. The
project identified 134 estab-
lishments whose activities
involve the generation of
waste oils and other substanc-
es such as antifreeze and
brake fluids. Of these, 107
stores were integrated into
the project (92%) and 57
have already registered with
the SKMARN AT as small
quantity generator and 45
were in some stage of the
registration process. In the
period of implementation of
this project, 398,000 liters
(105,140 gallons) of used oil
were collected properly.
Similarly, over 100
people attended two training
workshops that were held in
the city of NOgales with par-
ticipants also receiving used
oil management manuals.
Two collection centers, with-
in waste management facili-
ties already in operation, were
also established in the city
through an agreement with
the company Redciadora
Pedra^a S. I. ck (Ito re-
duce operating costs. Finally,
with the aim of promoting
best management practices of
hazardous waste and to estab-
lish a plan of sustainable inte-
grated management of used
oil, a public media campaign
was launched along with de-
livering brochures.
Alamo Recycling Team Includes Everyone (ARTIE) Program.
The City of Alamo,
Texas, was awarded a Border
2020 grant for $54,838 in
order to create a healthier,
cleaner environment by en-
hancing the city's solid waste
and recycling programs, as
well as increase environmen-
tal stewardship within the
community. The project fo-
cused on creating a recycling
solid waste system improve-
ments through a holistic ap-
proach. In conjunction with
another grant that was award-
ed to the City from the Low-
er Rio Grande Valley Devel-
opment Council, the city was
able to build capacity by hir-
ing additional environmental
staff, purchase equipment
and supplies, provide bi-
lingual marketing materials,
conduct community presenta-
tions, hold a recycling mascot
contest (358 proposals re-
ceived) and develop environ-
mental partnerships within
the community. Dissemina-
tion of information of the
education materials was not
only done by community
presentations, but also utiliz-
ing the City's media outlets
(social networks, local news-
paper, TV station). The city
was also able to purchase and
install 10 solar powered cam-
eras that were placed in previ-
ously identified top "dumping
hotspots" throughout the
city. Overall, utilizing both
grants, the city of Alamo:
• Conducted 5 community
presentations with over
1,270 students in attend-
ance;
• 5000 bi-lingual Recycling
brochures developed
(Recycling, tire disposal &
hazardous waste);
• Enhanced solid waste sys-
tems established: revolving
recycling trailer schedule
determined and maintained
for schools & winter Tex-
ans resorts;
• Community clean-ups con-
ducted & one hazardous
waste collection event con-
ducted;
• Stomi Drain stenciling
conducted- utilizing city
storm water map book;
• City staff was able to see a
decrease in illegal dumping
by as much as 238 tons/
year with the installation of
die cameras; and
• Established new Environ-
mental partnerships: RDA
for collection of electronic
waste and Captain D. Sa-
linas Elementary for the
Salinasville Minitropolis
Project.
The before and after of one of the business that participated
in the project
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 20
Supporting Pharr efforts to maintain a clean community.
The city of Pharr,
Texas was awarded two
Border 2020 Program grants
aimed to prevent illegal
dumping and raise aware-
ness among the residents m
the city. The first grant for
$20,000 USD was awarded
to a project to combat the
illegal disposal of scrap tires.
The grant was used to create
an incentive program to
help curb illegal dumping by
holding a monthly tire col-
lection event, for three
months, in which residents
could collect as much as
50(£ per tire. With the sup-
port of over 50 volunteers
and city staff, 10.95 tons of
scrap tires were collected
and sent for recycling. The
importance of cleaning up
tire waste is a way to com-
bat potential mosquito-
borne breeding grounds that
can lead to illnesses. The
city continues to hold com-
munity clean up incentive
programs to help accom-
plish the goal of being one
of the cleanest cities in the
Rio Grande Valley.
The second grant
of $20,000 USD awarded,
helped to increase outreach
and awareness surrounding
illegal dumping and increase
volunteer opportunities
through such efforts as
community programs such
as Operation Clean Sweep.
This project focused on
developing a bilingual public
outreach campaign to help
combat illegal dumping and
market the message in the
community "Keeping Pharr
Beautiful...Starts at I lomc".
The city arranged to
have clean up events that
encouraged residents to
bring in their used tire waste
in order to deter illegal
dumping, as well as, letting
homeowners become aware
of the citations they may
face if they store more than
five tires at once in their
home. The city also imple-
mented a monthly volunteer
clean-up program from De-
cember 2014 through Sep-
tember 2015 where resi-
dents were able to help pick
-up trash collected on roads
or larger lots. During the
scrap tire collection events,
over 4,413 scrap tires were
collected. The City of Pharr
also had an informational
workshop on August 2014,
in order to teach residents
about: the current state rules
governing used and scrap
tires; the criminal laws that
are available for use by local
governments to control
scrap tire waste; and the
common areas of policy
violation. A third outcome
from this project was the
implementation of " Adopt a
landscape corner," which
allowed local businesses to
"adopt" a street side area
for beautification through
landscaping. The project
also funded a competition at
elementary schools that en-
couraged recycling.
One of the three scrap tires collection events held
at Pharr.
Promotoras -led environmental health education to children in Eagle Pass.
Southwest Border
Area Health Education Cen-
ter (AHEC) was a recipient
of a $69,083 USD Border
2020 Program grant that led
to an 18-month information
campaign to improve chil-
dren's health through the
aide of Promotoras
(community health workers)
who provided environmen-
tal health information to
young children and commu-
nity members on asthma,
exposures to lead, pesticide
and mercury.
The Promotoras
model was used for reaching
out to parents and care giv-
ers, school teachers and
child care providers with the
aim of improving environ-
ments in and around the
home, school and childcare
facilities. This region has
higher than average inci-
dences of asthmatic symp-
toms in children than the
national average.
Several trainings
between March and May of
2015 were held for 73 teach-
ers and support staff from
Seco Mines Elementary,
Pete Gallego Elementary
and Seco Mines Headstart
Center. During this same
period, a total of 774 stu-
dents (aged 6 up to 11) from
these participating schools
received education on in-
door air quality, outdoor
(ambient) air quality, haz-
ardous materials, pesticide
use and management, and
waste management. In addi-
tion, students at a daycare
center received a presenta-
tion on lead. Pre and post
assessments of residents
showed an improvement in
knowledge, with some actu-
ally testing their homes for
certain environmental
chemicals such as lead. The
Promotoras also arranged two
separate cleaning campaign
events along two miles of
the Elm Creek subdivision
in August 2015. A total of
78 (33-gallon) trash bags
was collected by volunteers
at the clean-up event.
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PAGE 21
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Working to keep
To support the City
of Tijuana, Baja California,
in reducing waste generation
and diverting recyclable ma-
terials from going into land-
fills, the Border 2020 Pro-
gram awarded two grants to
demonstrate the viability of
composting and to reduce
plastic trash on beaches near
the city.
With one grant, the
Cokgio de la Frontera Norte
(COLEF, by its acronym in
Spanish), a Border 2020
Program partner, is leading
a food scraps composting
pilot with Tijuana house-
holds near "ELcoparqm, a pro-
totype of a sustainable com-
munity established by
COLEP. The project, led by
Dr. Carlos de la Parra, has
104 households participat-
ing and in late June 2016,
rood scrap composting activities in 1 ijuana,
Tijuana clean.
they reported collecting
1200 bags of organics with
only one unacceptable
bag. The household's suc-
cessful adherence to proto-
cols was attributed to the
households volunteering to
adhere to detailed protocols
demonstrated at a required
workshop.
COLEF is collabo-
rating with Tijuana environ-
mental and public works
departments to share results
as input for developing their
own program. The compost
pilot is working under an
USEPA approved Quality
Assurance Project Plan
(QAPP) for conducting field
monitoring and lab analysis
associated with parameters
to: assess the composting
process (e.g. air flow, pH,
moisture) and compost
characteristics (e.g. carbon,
granularity), metals, organ-
ics).
The other grant was
awarded to Proyecto Fronteri-^o
de Education Ambiental, a civil
organization that launched
the "Ocean Friendly Restau-
rants", a program adapted
Promoters of the Ocean Friendly Restaurants program,
from Surf Rider in San Die-
go to reduce trash, especially
Styrofoam single-use con-
tainers in restaurants along
Tijuana's beach areas.
Their work includes
an outreach campaign to
inform restaurants and pa-
trons about the value of
patronizing restaurants cer-
tified as ocean friendly prac-
tices, which includes com-
pelling 60-second Spanish
language videos that align
with USEPA's global "Trash
Free Waters" program (you
can view the videos using
this link with the password
Specola).
The project team
identified 13 restaurants in
Tijuana's Playas district and
set a goal to certify 12 as
part of this initial pilot. In
March of 2016, they partici-
pated in the 31st cleanup
event called "Salvemos la Pla-
ya", collecting 6 tons of
beach trash along with many
sponsors from the public
and private sector. The res-
taurants committing to
make changes will be
trained, assisted m imple-
menting changes, and be
considered part of a net-
work of certified Ocean
Friendly restaurants. For
more information, please
visit the webpage: of Proyecto
Fmnte.ri.-70 de. Education Ambi-
Cleaning and transforming public spaces for recreation and ecological
benefits in Mexicali.
One of the "Mexicali Fluye" campaign brochures.
The New River,
also known as the Hardy
River, originates in the
northern part of the Mexi-
cali Valley in Mexico and
flows through the Mexicali
and Calexico urban areas
before discharging in the
Sal ton Sea in die United
States. Trash disposed in
rivers and agricultural drains
remains a serious binational
environmental contamina-
tion issue, contributing to
public health threat, includ-
ing vectors of disease and
urban blight. The inade-
quate management of solid
waste, along with air quality
and other environmental
issues, further contribute to
an already highly impacted
border community.
To address the
trash, including scrap tires
and other discarded materi-
als, die Sonoran Institute, in
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 22
before and after in the Community Park area,
partnership with the Border
2020 Program, developed a
project with a fresh, innova-
tive and integrated approach
that aims to transform agri-
cultural drains into green
corridors, with recreational
and ecological benefits. In
collaboration and coordina-
tion with municipal, state,
and federal government
agencies, along with com-
munity members and non-
profit organizations, the
goal was to mitigate dump-
ing through an integrated
approach that addresses lack
of adequate municipal ser-
vices, enforcement, and en-
vironmental education.
The main objectives
of this project were: 1)
cleanup 1.5 km of the sec-
tion known as the Interna-
tional Drain, and 2} devel- the surrounding communi-
opment of an integrated ties to identify and establish
waste management model communications with local
that provides for short and schools, civil organizations
long-term solutions to illegal and businesses; estimate the
trash dumping that contrib- type and volume of solid
ute to the New River pollu- waste at households and in
tion. the drain itself; identify ex-
isting local recycling oppor-
During the imple- tunities and identify existing
mentation period, the Son- and potential rehabilitation
oran Institute conducted opportunities,
multiple site visits to the
International Drain site and The Sonoran Insti-
tute has successfully en-
gaged 21 organizations from
federal, state and local gov-
ernment agencies, as well as,
private, non-profit, and aca-
demic sectors. Furthermore,
they recruited neighborhood
and Other volunteers to as-
sist with cleanup and other
activities. A summary of the
most significant accomplish-
ments are listed below:
• Implemented ten clean-
up events that removed
and properly disposed of
2,098 m3 of trash, tires,
and other materials from
a 1.5 km section of the
International Drain.
• Worked to mitigate future
dumping by installing
large trash containers and
bins in areas where ser-
vice was lacking and in-
stalled two time-lapse
cameras to deter illegal
dumping and vandalism.
• Taunched a public cam-
paign to stop dumping
and encourage environ-
mental stewardship, re-
ferred to as "Metdeali
Fhtye" throughout the city
of Mexicali.
• Designed and installed
landscape improvements
transforming drain areas
into walkable, park areas
along 1,500 m? including
planting of 20 native
trees, a walking trail and
benches.
For the community
park, a drip irrigation system
and eco-efficient lamps will
be installed to secure the
long-term maintenance of
this protected site. The Son-
oran Institute is working
with the environmental pro-
tection agency of Mexicali
to request the concession of
the federal area where the
park is located. The success
of this project resulted in
two new grants to rehabili-
tate five km along five addi-
tional drains.
The Community Park area with some of the planted trees around it
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PAGE 23
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Regional plan for waste management in Ascension and Janos.
Ruined buildings at the "La Fundidora" site,
A Border 2020 Pro-
gram grant was awarded to
develop an integrated waste
management plan for As-
cension and Janos, Chihua-
hua. The plan sought to
demonstrate that through
proper waste segregation
and recovery of waste mate-
rials, the waste going to the
landfill could significantly be
reduced, therefore, extend-
ing the life of the landfill.
The implementation of the
plan would also reduce the
financial burden to the mu-
nicipalities and transform
waste into recoverable mate-
rials.
The Project carried
out by the Red Integral de
Manejo de Residues para el De-
sarrolb Sitstentable, a
civil organization, focused
on five objectives;
• Develop a Regional Plan
of Integrated Waste Man-
agement for municipali-
ties of Ascension and
Janos, Chihuahua.
• Identify two places con-
taminated with waste of
the processing of lead-
acid batteries in the mu-
nicipality of Ascension
and if feasible, their inte-
gration into the National
Inventory of Polluted
Sites (SISCO, by its acro-
nym in Spanish).
• Identify the operation of
a separation and sorting
solid waste system for
their valorization.
• Install a permanent col-
lection center for the
communities focused On
collecting household haz-
ardous waste such as used
oils, filters, paints, sol-
vents, containers, electric
batteries and pesticide
containers.
• Hold a regional work-
shop on dissemination of
results. The workshop
would present the results
of the Regional Waste
Management Plan, the
strategies for implement-
ing the plan, the diagnos-
tic results of two contam-
inated places and the es-
tablishment of a collec-
tion center for collecting
household hazardous
waste.
The two contami-
nated sites had been identi-
fied since 2003. The first
property owned by Hmr^p,
Sj4. de C.l * known as "La
Fundidora", had waste on the
site comprised of piles of
used lead-acid batteries, bat-
tery housings, containers
with lubricant used oils and
lead smelting waste, among
others; as well as evidence
of high levels of natural soil
contamination by dangerous
waste such as arsenic and
cadmium.
The second con-
taminated site, located on
the property "Los Tempora-
les", was identified as having
land contamination that
potentially posed a risk to
the Mimbres Aquifer, a trans-
boundary aquifer from
which drinking water and
agricultural irrigation for
Palomas, Chihuahua, and
Columbus, New Mexico, is
extracted.
The study recom-
mended that both sites
needed to be remediated
due to the contaminants
found at each site. There is a
higher priority to: clean up
the site identified as "La
Fundidora" due to the fact
that it contains high
amounts of soluble metals
such as, lead, arsenic, and
cadmium in the soil. A me-
dium level priority cleanup
was given to the site "Los
Temporales".
End-of-life Vehicles Guide.
Under Border 2020
Program, USEPA and
SEMARNAT have pro-
duced an End-of-life Vehi-
cles Guide. The guide was
requested to address the
needs of auto recyclers in
the border region. The
guide includes information
on the environmentally
sound manner of preparing
end-of-life vehicles so that
they are ready to be pro-
cessed by metal scrappers. It
addresses a waste stream
that can pose an especially
high risk to; human health
and the environment be-
cause of die hazardous ma-
terials which should be re-
moved before a vehicle is
sent to a scrap yard. The
complete packet will include
a folder consisting of the
guide, waste cards, a poster
and a CD-ROM with a digi-
tal copy of the printed mate-
rial. All materials are availa-
ble in English and Spanish
and will be distributed along
the U.S.-Mexico Border.
The specific waste-
streams highlighted on the
waste cards for removal are
lead, mercury switches, re-
frigerants, waste batteries,
waste fluids and waste fuel;
and include, for each one, a
detailed description of prop-
er handling techniques with
diagrams. The waste cards
and poster are intended to
be displayed in the handling
facility so that technicians
can reference the environ-
mentally sound management
practices quickly and easily.
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 24
GOAL 4: ENHANCE JOINT PREPAREDNESS FOR
ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSE
Hazardous railcar leak mitigation preparedness in the Paso del Norte
region.
First responders at the training provided by BNSF Railway.
The City of El Paso
received a Border 2020 Pro-
gram grant of $30,000 USD
in 2015 to increase prepar-
edness and response involv-
ing hazardous railcar leak
incidences in the Paso del
Norte region. Hazardous
rail cargo crosses the inter-
national boundary via the
"Black Bridge" between IJ
Paso, Texas and Juarez, Chi-
huahua. Many of the railcars
are staged in downtown El
Paso, with the potential of
exposing thousands of peo-
ple in both El Paso and Ciu-
dad Juarez to an incident
that would have an immedi-
ate and dire effect on the
populace and environment
when exposed to a hazard-
ous substance. In addition, a
newly constructed inter-
modal facility in Dona Ana
County, New Mexico, adja-
cent to the Santa Teresa
Port of Entry has increased
the amount of rail traffic in
the region, thus, increasing
the potential for hazardous
railcar incidents.
The project funded
helped to increase prepared-
ness for possible hazardous
railcar incidences, increase
mitigation capabilities and
to re-establish and continue
communications between
first responders between the
communities of El Paso,
Ciudad Juarez and Doha
Ana County. The project
entailed the purchase of the
three Midland Kits, equip-
ment used to stop and con-
tain leaks that may occur if a
railcar incident were to oc-
cur involving hazardous
substances. Each of the ju-
risdictions received one of
these kits because none of
them had this piece of
equipment prior to the
grant. The kits are the most
state of the art pieces of
equipment that first re-
sponders can utilize for
such incidences. The equip-
ment was necessary, as the
rail industry has changed to
what is termed "next gener-
ation" railcars for the trans-
portation of a diverse array
of hazardous materials.
These new railcars use dif-
ferent valves and fittings to
load and unload the material
being transported, thereby
making much of the tradi-
tional mitigation equipment
the region possessed now
obsolete.
In July 2015, during
a three-day period, more
than 120 first responders
from El Paso, Ciudad Juarez
and Dona Ana County Fire
Department received the
proper training needed to
operate and learn how to
use the Midland Kits. Train-
ers from BNSF Railway,
who invented the Midland
Kit, trained the responders
utilizing a mock railcar that
was transported from their
training rail yard. The train-
ing consisted of lecture,
PowerPoint and dialogue
between the training partici-
pants and instructors. The
final portion of the training
involved using a Midland
Kit on a training rail car, to
properly learn how to han-
dle this piece of equipment.
The training event was cov-
ered by the local media, gen-
erating six news stories on
the local television in El:
Paso and Juarez, as well as,
two newspaper articles, one
in the El Paso Times and
another in the Diario dejud-
In April 2016, once
the Midland kits had been
purchased by El Paso Fire
Department, a half-day re-
fresher training was held
with representatives from
each of the jurisdictions. In
addition, that day each of
the jurisdictions received
their own Midland Kit to
take back to their respective
cities. With the funding of
this project, the first re-
sponders within the region
are now better equipped and
prepared to deal with haz-
ardous materials spills in-
volving railcars. Further
more, there is an increase in
awareness and knowledge
among the first responders
of the threats that involve
railcars in the region. Final-
ly, communication among
the jurisdictions was re-
established and strength-
ened with the training event
that occurred.
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PAGE 25
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
Arizona-Sonora emergency preparedness & response collaboration.
The emergency pre-
vention, preparedness and
response efforts are focused
on enhanced communica-
tions, exercises, training and
equipment exchange to fos-
ter cross-border collabora-
tion and to mitigate envi-
ronmental impacts caused
by disasters. The Arizona-
Sonora Task Force has had
remarkable success, a few of
the many examples include:
• Over the last five years,
7,136 first responders and
emergency managers have
been trained. Topics in-
cluded: Incident Com-
mand System, First Re-
sponder Awareness, First
Responder Operator,
HazMat Refresher and
Traffic Incident Manage-
ment System.
• A binational hill scale and
notification exercise was
conducted in Agua Prieta,
Sonora, on July TO, 2015,
involving two tanker
trucks carrying Sodium
Hydrosulfide and Ferro
Cyanide colliding with a
vehicle at the border
crossing. The exercise
was sponsored by
PROFEPA and involved
first responders and
emergency managers
from both sides of the
border.
• In the Fall of 2015, the
city of Wilcox, Arizona,
donated personal protec-
tive equipment (jackets,
helmets, boots, gloves),
hoses and other fire-
fighting equipment to the
Border 2020 Program for
delivery to Sonoran fire
departments.
• The Task Force hosted a
five day training course
(1/2 day course offered
multiple times) provided
by Union Pacific in
Nogales, Arizona. Over
250 people from the U.S.
and Mexico participated
in the course that focused
on an introduction to
railroad operations and
the associated hazards
related to tanker cars car-
rying sulfuric acid.
• The Santa Cruz County
Office of Emergency
Management will facilitate
data and information ex-
change through training
at six locations along the
Arizona-Sonora border.
The training covers sever-
al software applications:
1) WebEOC (Web Based
Emergency Operations
irefighters at one joint
Center) allows real time
communications amongst
responders at the scene
with command personnel;
2) CAMEO (Computer-
Aided Management of
Emergency Operations)
can be used to access,
store and evaluate infor-
mation critical for devel-
oping emergency plans;
and 3) ALOHA (Areal
Locations Of Hazardous
Atmospheres) allows the
user to estimate the
downwind dispersion of a
chemical cloud.
All of these efforts
along wife ongoing efforts
to update Sister City Emer-
gency Plans support pre-
venting and minimizing the
magnitude of emergency
incidents along the border.
For example, cross-border
cooperation provided the
immediate support to ad-
dress an Agua Prieta, Sono-
ra, warehouse fire. The bi-
national plan was activated
in response to the ware-
house fire at 03:50 am on
March 5, 2016. The Doug-
las, Arizona, Fire Depart-
ment responded with one
engine and two firefighters
on board and stayed On sce-
ne for approximately 6.5
hours to address the inci-
dent. The smoke was a
threat to both cities.
In another incident,
the training, equipment,
planning and exercises
paved die way for a success-
ful cross-border emergency:
on March 1st, 2016, the city
of Agua Prieta activated the
binational plan due to an
uncontrolled tire fire. The
Douglas Fire Department
responded with one Engine
and three Firefighters on
board.
one bi-national exercise,
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 26
Bi-national exercises at the cities of Harlingen and Matamoros.
The City of Harl-
ingen received a $60,000
USD Border 2020 Program
grant for cross-training and
exercises with the City of
Matamoros. The objectives
of die project included:
training for the tactical inci-
dent management of on-
scene operations at a Haz-
ardous Materials Incident;
preparing the First respond-
ers to manage during die
first hour of a Hazardous
Materials Incident; learning
how to identify hazardous
materials transporting con-
tainers; learning control
techniques for leaks and
spills and; training to use die
Incident Command System
(ICS) and remote communi-
cation technology. Part of
die training included review
of die sister-city contingen-
cy plan in place and the use
of it while conducting a tab-
letop and functional exercis-
es.
The training and
two exercises conducted
took place in May 2016. The
training included:
• Rescue and Recovery;
Introduction response
information exposure and
contamination and de-
contamination proce-
dures.
• Personal Protective
Equipment: Chemical
science personal protec-
tive equipment.
• Product Control: Con-
tainer types product con-
trol measures.
Varticipants of the bi-national exervise,
The table top and
functional exercises looked
at a response diat involved a
release of a ton from a chlo-
rine cylinder as well as a
release of chlorine from a
rail car. The project funded
resulted in die enhancement
of a bi-national response by
including the latest technol-
ogy advancements for com-
munications; enhanced die
re-
sponse capabilities of re-
sponding to a potential
chemical exposure/accident
that could affect both sides
of the border; and updated
the sister city plan contacts.
The final day, which includ-
ed the functional exercise,
was covered by local media.
The story can be found at
the webpage of KVEO-TV.
Enhance joint preparedness for environmental emergencies.
In 2012, die Office
of the Federal Attorney
General for die Protection
of the Environment
(PROEEPA, by its acronym
in Spanish) commemorated
die 20di anniversary of its
foundation by organizing a
series of activities in the area
of protection of die envi-
ronment, focusing on die
initiative of establishing a
the National Chemical
Emergency Preparedness
and Response Day in view
of its relevance and im-
portance.
Thanks to the sup-
port provided by the public
and private sector of Mexi-
co, as well as by die
USEPA, it has been possible
to carry out approximately
1,050 exercises and 285
training events involving the
participation of approxi-
mately 150,000 people,
along die 2,000 mile long
Mexico-United States bor-
der, Of diis total number of
events, 20 bmational exer-
cises and 19 binational ca-
pacity-building workshops
have been completed during
the past four years. Signifi-
cant coordination is neces-
sary to accomplish diese
large events as PROFEPA
and the USEPA work with
die offices of Civil Protec-
tion, within Mexico's Secre-
tariat of Governance, Mexi-
can and U.S. States, local
municipalities, and Tribal
governments.
The National
Chemical Emergency Pre-
paredness and Response
Day was commemorated on
July 8, 2016 widi die plan-
ning of four binational full
scale exercises which were
conducted along die United
States-Mexico border sister
cities of; Calexico and Mexi-
cali; Ciudad Juarez and El
Paso/Sunland Park; Eagle
Pass and Piedras Negras and
McAllen and Reynosa. All
other 11 sister city contin-
gency plans held notification
exercises. The U.S.- Mexico
Joint Contingency Plan
(JCP) binational notification
system, undergoing final
revisions, was tested by
Mexico's, National Cominu-
nication Center
(CENACOM, by its acro-
nym in Spanish) during
these exercises. The USEPA
border offices in El Paso
and San Diego have provid-
ed support via training
workshops dealing widi In-
cident Command System
and Hazardous Materials
incidents, including provid-
ing evaluators. In addition,
the Office of Emergency
Management has been coor-
dinating the upgrades to the
binational notification sys-
tem of die JCP, widi die
National Response Center,
administered by the US
Coast Guard, in Washing-
ton, DC, making this a gen-
uine border-wide effort.
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PAGE 27
HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
GOAL 5: COMPLIANCE ASSURANCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL
STEWARDSHIP
Industrial discharge and release fact sheet.
The Colorado
School of Mines, a Border
2020 Program grantee, has
prepared fact sheets on mul-
ti-media emissions and dis-
charges from border indus-
trial facilities reported by
Mexico's Registry of Emis-
sions and Transfer of Pollu-
tants (RETC, by its acronym
in Spanish) and the US Tox-
ic Release Inventory (TRI)
program data. The Border
2020 Program will subse-
quently work with border
stakeholders to: disseminate
and assist border communi-
ties in interpreting and de-
termining what if any fur-
ther support these commu-
nities may need. The fact
sheets were prepared for the
Arizona-Sonora and the
California-Baja California
border regions. The maps
below show the distribution
of reporting facilities in the
border. This project was
developed to implement
recommendations of the
Commission for Environ-
mental Cooperation (CBC)
report "Taking Stock"
which advises to making
tins information more ac-
cessible and understandable
for communities to use. Vis-
it this link of the CEC
webpage for the report.
Keportingfacilities in California-Baja California border region, Keportingfacilities in ^\ri%ona-Sonora border region,
California regional solid waste working group.
In 2015, Califor-
nia's legislature (AB965)
empowered the California-
MexicO Relations Council
with new authorities includ-
ing the formation of the
Border Solid Waste
Workgroup to address waste
tires, solid waste, and exces-
sive sediment in the border.
In 2016, the Workgroup
convened a broad stake-
holder group to identify and
propose short and long-
term solutions to binational
challenges in the California
Baja California border. The
Workgroup awarded
$300,000 USD in grants to
Wildcoast for Tijuana tire
cleanups and the Sonoran
Institute for Calexico and
Mexicali trash mitigation;
and it is working collabora-
tively with the Border 2020
Program to implement ele-
ments of its strategy as it
moves into 2017. For more
information visit Cal-EPA's
site.
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
PAGE 28
COOPERATION TO IMPROVE ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
vvEPA
United States
Environmental Protection \ i
Agency V J
Over die past sev-
eral years, die U.S. Environ-
mental Protection Agency
(USEPA) and die U.S. Sec-
tion of the U.S.-Mexico
Border Healdi Commission
(BHC), U.S. Department of
Healdi and Human Services
(USDHHS) have developed
a strategy to collaboratively
address environmental and
public health challenges of
mutual concern and priority
in the border region.
Through diis strategy, die
USEPA and die BHC have
committed to working more
closely to fulfill and
strengdien each organiza-
tion's strategic frameworks
along die U.S.-Mexico bor-
der, including die Border
2020 Program, and to pro-
tect Children's Environmen-
tal Healdi, a central compo-
nent of USEPA's mission.
Public health, and
particularly children's
health, along the border can
be affected by the misman-
agement of pesticides, poor-
indoor and outdoor air qual-
ity, misuse of chemicals and
odier waste, poor water-
quality, and binational
chemical emergencies.
USEPA and BHC
funds and in-kind support,
Border 2020 Program
grants, and leveraged re-
sources from state and local
partners have all supported
die strategy to address chil-
dren's environmental health
in die border region. In die
past three years, die U.S.-
Mexico Border 2020 Pro-
gram has provided more
dian $500,000 to a dozen
organizations to specifically
address children's healdi.
These efforts have included
education and capacity
building of childcare and
school personnel on school
and home environmental
health; of farm workers and
advocates on pesticide safe-
ty and take-home pesticide
exposures; and of communi-
ty healdi workers, or Promo-
toras, on a wide range of
environmental healdi topics.
Widi a focus on a train-die-
trainer model, these efforts
have direcdy impacted hun-
dreds of people who, in
turn, share die knowledge
and skills with hundreds
more among dieir families
and communities in die bor-
der region. Two examples
of many recent successes
include:
• Children's Environ-
mental Health Sympo-
sia. USEPA and its Bor-
der 2020 Program and
children's healdi partners,
including BHC, worked
togedier to plan and con-
vene three symposia in
the border region to in-
crease knowledge of how
early childhood exposure
can affect children's
healdi and to facilitate
networking among the
healthcare community,
Promotoras, and the public.
The first was held in El
Paso, Texas on Septem-
ber 24-25, 2015 where
more than 150 persons
attended, traveling from
Texas, New Mexico and
Chihuahua. The second
was held in San Diego,
California on January 27-
28, 2016 where 136 per-
sons attended, traveling
from California, Baja Cal-
ifornia, Arizona, and So-
nora. Attendees included
doctors, nurses, Promo-
toras and public healdi
professionals. The diird
symposium was held Au-
gust 25, 2015 in Browns-
ville, Texas, with over 130
attendees that included
medical professional, aca-
demia, local, state and
federal staff and commu-
nity healdi care workers.
• Promotoras Work-
shops. EPA worked
closely with BHC and its
state and local partners to
host ten training events
for Promotoras who work
in communities along the
border between June and
October 2015 including
seven in Texas, one in
Arizona, and two in Cali-
fornia. A total of 400 Pro-
motoras and public healdi
professionals attended
these trainings.
For a more detailed
description of diese and
other accomplishments of
children's environmental
health in die border region,
please see the Border 2020
website where USEPA has
posted a stand-alone
USEPA-BHC collaborative
agreement accomplishments
report.
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HIGHLIGHTS REPORT AUTUMN 2016
BORDER 2020 PROGRAM'S COMUNICATION COMMITTEE
General Coordinators
Lisa Almodovar
Armando Yanez Sandoval
U.S. EPA Headquarters Offices
SEMARNAT
Washington, D.C.
Mexico City
Staff Members
Marta Jordan
Tadzio Clavel Herrera
U.S. EPA Headquarters Offices
SEMARNAT
Washington, D.C.
Mexico City
Jordan.Marta@epa.gov
tadzio. clavel@ semarnat. gob .mx
Maria Sisneros
Migviel Fragoso Romero
U.S. EPA Region 6
SEMARNAT
EI Paso, Texas
Mexico City
sisneros.maria@epa.gov
miguel.fragoso@semarnat.gob.mx
Jeremy Bauer
U.S. EPA Region 9
San Diego, California
Bauer.Jeremy@epa.gov
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BORDER 2020: UNITED STATES-MEXICO ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAM
MISSION STATEMENT
As a result of the partnership among U.S.
Border Tribes and federalstate and local
governments in the United States and Mexi-
co, the mission of the Border 2020 program
is to:
Protect the environment and public health
in the U.S.-Mexico border region, consistent
with the principles of sustainable develop-
ment.
www.p-ob.mx/semamat
2q
A/TER^
iVisit our web pages!
www.epa.gOv/boi:der2020
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