San Diego City Wire

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) have initiated a new health survey in the Tijuana River Valley. This Assessment of Chemical Exposures (ACE) survey follows the recent Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER) that concluded last Saturday.

Running from today until November 22, the ACE survey will gather demographic and health data from individuals living, working, or spending time in the south region's beaches, spanning from Imperial Beach to Coronado. Unlike CASPER, which concentrated on households and families, the ACE survey targets those who work or reside near water bodies.

Dr. Ankita Kadakia, County interim public health officer, emphasized the importance of this initiative: “This community deserves better. By bringing in this federal agency to help us conduct an ACE survey, individuals who live or work near the water have a chance to voice their concerns, their experiences, and the impacts to their physical and mental health.”

Survey teams will distribute information with QR codes linked to the survey as they walk through communities and beach areas. The target participants are those who have been in these regions within the past 30 days for activities such as surfing, shopping, walking, or fishing. Participants can complete the confidential survey on computers or mobile devices.

The questions will address exposure time and location, health impacts—both physical and mental—health services utilized, medical history, and pet health. The findings aim to enhance understanding of community health impacts due to sewage pollution exposure.

ATSDR is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Its mission includes safeguarding communities from adverse health effects related to hazardous substances exposure. The agency has previously responded to significant environmental health emergencies like the 2023 East Palestine Train Derailment in Ohio and Flint Michigan's water crisis in 2015.

Further details about ACE are available on the County’s South Region Health Concerns website.