San Diego Leaders Demand Environmental Fixes in USMCA Extension

Local officials and advocates push trade negotiators to mandate cross-border pollution solutions as part of agreement negotiations.

• By Jesse Jacobs
• July 20, 2026

Elected officials and environmental groups gathered at the John J. Montgomery Memorial Wing to urge international trade negotiators to include binding pollution solutions in any extension or renewal of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

Assemblymember David Alvarez, San Diego County Supervisor Paloma Aguirre and representatives from environmental organizations called for enforceable environmental standards with consequences for failure.

The demands coincide with ongoing trade negotiations after U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer indicated the administration intends to address agreement shortcomings before extending the deal.

Speakers outlined several priorities to address cross-border wastewater contamination, including:

• Rapid Response Mechanism: Creating an environmental oversight body to handle violations.
• Infrastructure Funding: Securing sustained operations, maintenance and construction capital for critical border water infrastructure.
• Agency Coordination: Improving collaboration between the EPA and the North American Development Bank (NADBank) while strengthening binational watershed agreements.

Advocates emphasized that decades of trade-driven industrial growth have outpaced local wastewater infrastructure. The resulting discharges of untreated sewage and industrial waste have led to multi-year beach closures, damaged local businesses and created elevated public health risks for border communities.