Newswise — The UC San Diego Alumni Association is sponsoring two alumni/student volunteer excursions to Los Laureles Canyon, Tijuana, to assist with the Tijuana River and Paver Project. The trips have been planned in response to an article in the September issue of @UCSD, the university's alumni publication, discussing the important work and research being conducted by UCSD lecturer Oscar Romo and his students in this destitute area of Baja California. The volunteer trips, open to UC San Diego students and alumni, are planned for November 15 and December 6.
Romo, a UC San Diego lecturer on urban studies and planning and the Coastal Training Program coordinator at the 2500-acre Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve (TRNERR) in Imperial Beach, has taken numerous groups of students to Los Laureles Canyon to help improve the conditions in the area. He will lead the alumni/student groups in November and December, with plans to construct frames for pavers—a mix of gravel and cement that create permeable paving stones. During heavy rains, the pavers slow water flows, prevent excess erosion and reduce flooding. Some of the paver frames will be used in the community of Los Laureles, which is immediately adjacent to the Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve. Others will be used for a demonstration area at the Visitor Center.
Nearly 80,000 destitute people live in Mexico's Los Laureles Canyon in makeshift homes made from tires, garage doors and other debris. "There is no planning, no roads, no power, no sewers," Romo says of the community. The lack of infrastructure means that sediment, organic waste and solid trash end up in the estuary. When storms hit, flood waters run down the badly eroded canyon, wiping out homes and occasionally killing residents. This sediment then destroys the wetlands below the canyon.
In addition to safeguarding residents, the volunteer project will also protect wildlife. A United Nations-designated "wetland of international importance," the Tijuana Reserve is one of the largest coastal wetlands in North America, More than 370 varieties of migratory and native birds have been spotted in the protected marsh habitat, which is home to six threatened and endangered species.
The estuary's mix of indigenous plants and silt is a final filtering system for cleansing rain and floodwaters before they reach the Pacific Ocean. But raw sewage, loose soil and trash from rainstorms choke out healthy marshland and create conditions for invasive plants to thrive, altering local ecosystems. In addition, the pollution closes San Diego's South Bay beaches nearly 180 days each year, affecting local health and economic conditions. "Without the estuary, these beaches would be closed year round," said Romo. "It's not just a case of nature serving nature," he says of the estuary. "It's nature serving us."
Romo, his students, and UC San Diego alumni are hoping to improve life for the residents of Los Laureles canyon. The university has been providing technical assistance and funding for their efforts. One of their most ambitious goals is to build 40 sustainable homes in the canyon. So far, the project has raised enough funds for three dwellings. The homes will be made of bamboo, which UCSD students suggested as a construction material because it can grow locally, Romo said. Also in the works is a micro-sewage plant that will treat wastewater from the neighborhood.
Additionally, UC San Diego students and faculty have set up a plant nursery in the canyon to try to bring back native vegetation that has been depleted by erosion, floods and construction. Numerous community meetings have taken place in the canyon, where residents are learning about the risks associated with waste water and trash. Romo said he hopes local residents will then soon take ownership of the project.
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