This week on Wednesday (January 20th), the city council of San Clemente in Orange County, Southern California, approved a proposal with a vote of 3:1 (with one abstention) allowing the Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to lease land at the city’s Reservoir Number 5 communication site and install and operate a maritime surveillance system to address public safety and health concerns caused by illegal vessel landings.
San Clemente is located adjacent to San Diego County and is the southernmost coastal city in Orange County with a population of approximately 64,000. Acting Mayor Steve Knoblock stated in an interview, “In the past year and a half, San Clemente has experienced 18 incidents of Mexican smuggling vessels landing, accounting for more than half of the illegal smuggling vessel landings in Los Angeles and Orange Counties.”
The surveillance cameras to be installed are powerful, capable of monitoring detailed activities on Santa Catalina Island over forty miles away. Knoblock, who proposed the installation of the cameras during his time as mayor last year, mentioned, “They are thermal imaging cameras, enabling detection of vessel movements during the night; they can penetrate thick fog.” This will aid in combating maritime smuggling and controlling the entry of illegal immigrants via sea, in addition to those who cross the border by land.
San Clemente is the first city in Orange County to permit federal officials to install monitoring systems. Some residents expressed concerns at the meeting, stating they do not want surveillance cameras installed, worrying about privacy issues and local oversight problems.
Since the city council meeting on February 4th last year, municipal staff have been in communication with CBP personnel to evaluate the feasibility of installing ocean-facing surveillance cameras, examining how they can monitor illegal vessel landings along the coastline to protect public safety and health.
In the following months, multiple meetings were held, and various locations were surveyed. CBP representatives proposed installing a wide base, tall mast, as well as a range of equipment including radar, cameras, sensors, and communication hardware at a high elevation position.
The final site chosen is the Reservoir Number 5 communication station, covering an area of approximately 24 square meters. The location offers an elevated position with a broad view overlooking the nearby seas. CBP will be responsible for constructing all facilities, covering all costs including installation, maintenance, repairs, and dismantling; the lease term is 5 years with the option to renew 3 times; the lessee will make a one-time payment of $10.
Some residents are concerned that the surveillance cameras will affect their daily lives, fearing that the cameras will capture people’s activities. Ultimately, an agreement was reached to focus the monitoring system primarily on maritime activities rather than residential areas.
The surveillance system will be solely owned, operated, maintained, and controlled by the federal government, without providing shared systems or access permissions to city employees or local law enforcement. However, CBP stated that certain information collected by the system can be shared with local authorities, such as identification details of distressed vessels at sea.
Councilman Mark Enmeier remarked, “I am willing to trust them, but it should be based on verification.” He expressed concerns about sacrificing civil liberties for expedient security measures and the lack of oversight by the city government.
CBP noted that due to the proprietary user interface of the system requiring special permissions to view, it is challenging to authorize city staff for monitoring. They mentioned that they will configure the system to avoid scanning residential areas within its range; however, if smuggling vessel activities at sea move into residential zones, the system will continue to track and monitor them.