Coronado’s mayor reported on 23 October 2026 that the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant had increased capacity from 25 million to 35 million gallons per day in 2025, while pressing U.S. and Mexican officials over the continuing Tijuana sewage crisis affecting Coronado’s beaches and waters. Coronado Eagle & Journal
- The South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant increased capacity from 25 million to 35 million gallons per day in 2025. Coronado Eagle & Journal
- Further expansion of the plant to at least 50 million gallons per day is scheduled for completion by the end of 2027. Coronado Eagle & Journal
- Three unfinished Minute 333 projects remain: expanding the Punta Bandera plant, constructing an offshore outfall and mapping Tijuana’s wastewater infrastructure. Coronado Eagle & Journal
- Mexico has made substantial progress repairing aging pipes, collectors and pumping facilities, although temporary spills have contributed to dirty ocean waters. Coronado Eagle & Journal
Wastewater Capacity Advances, Critical Projects Remain
In an opinion column published on 23 October, Coronado’s mayor described a meeting in Mexico City with the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, where senior U.S. and Mexican officials were pressed on the Tijuana sewage crisis and its effects on Coronado. Coronado Eagle & Journal
The U.S. Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission oversees the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant, which increased capacity from 25 million to 35 million gallons per day in 2025. Expansion to at least 50 million gallons per day is set for completion by the end of 2027. Coronado Eagle & Journal
Mexico has also repaired a substantial portion of aging wastewater pipes, collectors and pumping facilities, but some repairs produced temporary spills that dirtied nearby ocean waters. The mayor said more consistently clean water should follow as the work is completed. Coronado Eagle & Journal
The mayor also questioned five U.S. State Department officials about a promised 100% solution and pressed for completion of outstanding IBWC Minute 333 projects. He wrote: “My goal is not simply to have our beaches test clean today and in 2027. It is to ensure that the solution lasts.” Coronado Eagle & Journal
Three Unfinished Projects Set the Next Work Scope
The first unfinished project is expansion of the Punta Bandera treatment plant from approximately 18 million gallons per day to more than 43 million gallons per day through additional treatment facilities. Coronado Eagle & Journal
The second is a six-mile offshore outfall pipeline. The proposed design would carry treated sewage farther offshore and, according to the mayor, reduce most contamination affecting Coronado and much of the impact on Imperial Beach during treatment failures. Coronado Eagle & Journal
The third is a full assessment of Tijuana’s residential and commercial wastewater connections, including pipes, pumping stations, treatment facilities and vulnerabilities. The resulting map is intended to identify needed construction, repairs and future capacity. Coronado Eagle & Journal
The mayor said long-term effectiveness will require planning for continued population growth, reliable maintenance funding on both sides of the border, and continued maintenance, upgrading and support of treatment plants, pipelines and pumping systems. Coronado Eagle & Journal
Specification Read
The reported operating scale at the South Bay plant is 35 million gallons per day, equivalent to approximately 132,500 m³/day; the planned expansion is at least 50 million gallons per day, or approximately 189,250 m³/day. For the Punta Bandera project, reported capacity is approximately 18 million gallons per day, equivalent to about 68,100 m³/day, rising to more than 43 million gallons per day, or more than 162,700 m³/day. Coronado Eagle & Journal
No population-equivalent figure, design flow, influent BOD or COD concentration was reported, so those inputs cannot be inferred from the available information. The source identifies treatment-capacity expansion, an offshore outfall and wastewater-infrastructure mapping, but does not specify a process train. A plant handling this scale would normally require screening, primary treatment, biological treatment and tertiary treatment or disinfection; the event bears most directly on capacity expansion and collection-system reliability. The source also reports that treatment plants periodically fail or shut down, making dependable pumping, treatment and discharge capacity relevant to the project scope. Coronado Eagle & Journal
If your plant looks like a high-flow municipal wastewater facility near 132,500 m³/day with treatment failures, incomplete collection records or pressure to meet discharge requirements, this project points to capacity expansion, treatment reliability and mapped infrastructure as procurement priorities. Operators can review the municipal wastewater equipment and plant scope and assess an integrated sewage treatment approach. Further treatment applications are covered under Industries We Serve.
FAQ
What capacity expansion is planned for the South Bay wastewater treatment plant?
The plant increased capacity from 25 million to 35 million gallons per day in 2025. Further expansion to at least 50 million gallons per day is set for completion by the end of 2027. Coronado Eagle & Journal
What treatment capacity is planned for the Punta Bandera plant?
The unfinished project calls for additional treatment facilities that would increase capacity from approximately 18 million gallons per day to more than 43 million gallons per day. The source does not report the capital cost, procurement schedule or process configuration. Coronado Eagle & Journal
How will the proposed six-mile outfall affect beach contamination?
The source says a properly designed outfall could move discharges miles offshore, reducing most contamination of Coronado and much of the impact on Imperial Beach during treatment failures. It remains one of three unfinished Minute 333 projects, so no completion date was reported. Coronado Eagle & Journal
What information is missing for specifying treatment equipment?
The source reports capacity targets but does not provide design flow, population equivalent, influent BOD or COD, treatment-process requirements, capital cost, lead time or supplier-selection criteria. Equipment specifications would therefore require those inputs in addition to the reported capacity figures. Coronado Eagle & Journal
