The City of San Diego’s Stormwater Department has completed reconstruction of a berm that’s part of a vital storm channel in the Tijuana River Valley. A portion of the channel berm was badly damaged by severe storms that occurred in January 2024. This project took City crews three weeks and reflects the City of San Diego’s continuing commitment to maintain and enhance its infrastructure to protect against future storm impacts.

The berm repair work in the Smugglers Gulch channel included placing new fill soil and filter fabric, which are essential components in restoring the channel to its original condition.

“We are dedicated to restoring the integrity of our stormwater infrastructure in San Diego to help protect against flooding and potential storm damage,” said Todd Snyder, Stormwater Department Director. “This project addresses critical damage caused by the January storms and is a continuation of our work completed under an emergency declaration.”

The Stormwater Department works year-round to protect communities from flooding and enhance San Diego’s water quality. Following the emergency declaration in response to the January storms, the City has conducted emergency maintenance on approximately 18 miles of channels throughout San Diego. Mayor Todd Gloria included funding in the current fiscal year budget to continue maintaining channels ahead of the upcoming rainy season.

Despite these efforts, the Stormwater Department still faces a $1.6 billion shortfall in needed funding to upgrade and modernize its infrastructure. Learn more about the City’s infrastructure and channel maintenance efforts on the Think Blue Stormwater Infrastructure webpage.

Residents can report illegal dumping and trash near creeks or stormwater infrastructure on the GetItDone app, call 619-235-1000 or email swppp@sandiego.gov.