Hydrogen sulfide readings in the South Bay have exceeded the county’s safety threshold with growing frequency in 2026, signaling a worsening trend in the presence of the toxic gas despite ongoing efforts to address the Tijuana River sewage and pollution crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border.  Hourly readings at a hydrogen sulfide monitoring station in Nestor, near Berry Elementary School, exceeded that threshold more than 10% of the time so far this year, up from under 2% in 2024, according to monitoring data obtained from the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District. … The trend comes as state Sen. Steve Padilla, D-San Diego, pushes Senate Bill 58, which would require the state Air Resources Board to develop a response framework and evaluate the adequacy of hydrogen sulfide standards first adopted in 1969 to address odor, not health effects.

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