Rep. Ruiz Presses EPA Chief on New River Pollution Crisis

April 28, 2026 – Calexico Chronicle

Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz Secures EPA Administrator’s Commitment to Address New River

Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz pressed EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin at a congressional hearing on the FY2027 budget, securing commitments to visit the New River region and apply the same federal approach used for the Tijuana River crisis to the New River in Imperial Valley. The New River, considered the most polluted waterway in North America, carries raw sewage, industrial waste, pesticides, and heavy metals from Mexico across the border into Calexico, with fecal coliform levels reaching nearly 70,000 times the federal treaty limit. Ruiz highlighted serious public health impacts, including Border Patrol agents and students experiencing illness from exposure. The EPA administrator agreed not to wait for a binational water quality study due in June, with an EPA Region 9 visit to the area planned for May 11. Ruiz also raised concerns about a proposed 90% cut to the Clean Water State Revolving Fund in the FY2027 budget.

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