The State Commission of Public Services of Tijuana (CESPT) is building the “Cambio de Régimen” tank, an infrastructure project designed to capture treated wastewater from the Arturo Herrera and La Morita treatment plants, regulate its flow, and direct it away from the Tijuana River channel.
Currently 40% complete, the project forms part of the larger Treated Water Flow System that will route up to 1,100 liters per second of treated water away from the Tijuana River riverbed, advancing sanitation efforts in the basin and significantly reducing cross-border flows heading into the United States.
Mónica Vega Aguirre, Director General of CESPT, recently inspected the construction site and highlighted that the facility will make progress on ongoing sanitation initiatives across Tijuana and the border region.
“This tank is a fundamental component of the system we are constructing to remove treated wastewater at the Arturo Herrera and La Morita plants from the Tijuana River channel and move it along a new route. Through this infrastructure, we are making progress in rehabilitating our watershed and directly addressing an environmental issue that affects both sides of the border,” she said.
Designed with a storage capacity of 2,000 cubic meters, the tank will regulate incoming flows from both treatment plants before moving the water to a designated release point upstream of the Abelardo L. Rodríguez Dam as part of the broader flow network.
Wastewater will be pumped directly from the treatment plants into the facility and, once it reaches the tank, the water will continue its journey under controlled conditions.
Comprising seven components, the Treated Water Flow System is designed to divert water from the Arturo Herrera and La Morita facilities. The executive report for Minute 328 formally identifies the project as a strategic action to remove previously treated discharge from the main river channel.
Crews are actively constructing the tank’s core structure, a phase that involves pouring approximately 206 cubic meters of hydraulic concrete.
The project aligns with the commitments outlined in Minute 328, a landmark binational agreement between Mexico and the United States that establishes priority infrastructure projects to rehabilitate the Tijuana River basin.
