San Ysidro Smog Study

An EPA funded study will monitor smog levels in San Ysidro to evaluate the level of smog from the dense border traffic. The $230,000 study will use 12 smog sensors around the community to measure air quality. The planned expanded border crossing is supposed to reduce wait times and, therefore, reduce smog at the border. Idling cars are a major source of air pollution.

Water Usage Too Low?

After a year of reducing water usage in San Diego, now it’s so low that water treatment plants are being shut down. This winter, usage was so low that San Marcos’ $160 million water treatment plant was temporarily closed. Even during the summer, overall usage was so low that the county had excess capacity at water treatment plants of over 300 million gallons per day.

SANDAG Plan Under Fire

A proposed half-cent sales tax increase to fund local freeway, road, and public transit is under attack for not promoting public transit enough. The new tax would raise over $20 billion over 35 years but would mostly fund road and freeway expansions and improvements for cars, not encouraging public transit of buses and trolleys. The current half-cent tax was passed in 2004 and has funded projects like the Bus Rapid Transit lines that will soon open in Chula Vista.  The proposal may be on the ballot in November. The region’s transportation plan through 2050 could cost up to $200 billion.

Noah’s Ark To Visit SD

A life-sized, 2,500-ton replica of the biblical Ark is on the way to Brazil for the Olympics but will then travel to SD later this year. The Ark was built in the Netherlands and is used as a religious attraction. The wooden Ark is complete with life-sized fake animals.