Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday that declaring the Tijuana River cross-border sewage crisis an emergency would “have been just a statement backed up by nothing” to address the longstanding problem.“It would have meant nothing,” he said when asked why he has repeatedly rejected calls from local and state officials. … Newsom’s comments mark what many believe is the first time he has publicly explained his refusal to proclaim an emergency declaration. His administration has made the case that the sewage crisis does not qualify as an emergency under state statute. In an October 2023 letter to the state Coastal Commission, David Sapp, Newsom’s legal affairs secretary, said the issue was a jurisdictional one because it’s the federal government that owns the wastewater plant – currently undergoing repairs and an expansion – that has allowed Tijuana sewage to foul south San Diego shorelines.