WASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release) — Rep. Susan Davis (CA-53) plans to enlist the Navy in dealing with the border sewage spills and what kind of impact spills will have on national security. The Navy will build a $1 billion Navy SEAL training center, known as the coastal campus, down the strand near Imperial Beach. Davis wants an assessment of how construction and future training at the site could be impacted.
“We need a whole of government solution to the sewage spills,” said Davis. “We know the environmental and economic impact these spills have. What we don’t know, with the Navy planning to stage training operations in potentially contaminated waters, are the national security concerns. The Navy should take a look at this and coordinate with relevant agencies to assess what can be done to prevent future spills.”
Davis, a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, is looking to include language in this year’s defense bill to get a report from the Navy on any national security concerns surrounding border sewage spills.
“The Navy’s coastal campus will be vital for national security,” added Davis. “The last thing we want is our elite Navy SEALs training in water contaminated with sewage. Nor do we want training operations delayed.”
The Navy is set to begin construction on a 600-acre Navy SEAL training center along Route 75. Because of sewage spills, Imperial Beach has experienced 160 days of closures to parts of its shoreline over the past three years.
Davis would like the Navy to work with the Department of State, the EPA, the Department of Homeland Security, the International Boundary Water Commission, and the Department of the Interior to assess how our national security will be affected by future spills and how they can be prevented.
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Preceding provided by Congresswoman Susan Davis.