What is it that makes these two cities so different?

San Ysidro is a suburb of San Diego and is immediately north of the border across from Tijuana, Mexico. It is about 20 minutes from San Diego proper. The scenery is a dry and dusty beige. The 2000 census count noted a total population of 161,982 residents in SanYsidro. Seventy-six percent of the population is Hispanic/Latino.

Photo Credit: James Tourtellotte

An average "slow" day at the port of San Ysidro.

San Ysidro was first settled in 1759 as a way station for Franciscan monks. It was named for San Ysidro Labrador (Saint Isidore), the patron saint of farmers. The original one-lane dirt road border crossing was established in 1909.

The average annual rainfall in San Ysidro is 9.5 inches per year, the average low temperature is 49 degrees F., and the average high temperature is 79 degrees F.. Compare this to Blaine which has an average annual rainfall of 36 inches per year, the average low is 46 degrees F., and the average high is 60 degrees F.

Blaine is quite a bit smaller than San Ysidro. It has only 3,770 residents, of whom 88 percent are white. The area around Blaine is green and forested with a view of Mt. Baker and the Cascade Mountains to the east and Semiahmoo Bay and the Straight of Georgia to the west. Situated little more than a half-hour south of Vancouver, B.C., Blaine is also less than two hours from Seattle. Miners on their way to the Cariboo gold fields used the area around Blaine as a temporary camping ground. American soldiers engaged in the survey of the international boundary camped at Semiahmoo bay now known as Drayton Harbor in 1857-58, but it was not until 1870 when two white men with Indian wives settled down and established homes that Blaine became a permanent community.

The ports

San Ysidro is the busiest land border port in the world: approximately 65,000 cars and approximately 45,000 pedestrians enter the United States every day. About 900 employees work the 24 passenger lanes in San Ysidro and the passenger traffic that enters through Otay Mesa, eight miles to the east, in 8-hour shifts running 24/7. Due to the volume of both passenger traffic and commercial cargo traffic traveling the I-5 corridor, the workload is divided between two separate ports, each with its own port director. All cargo traffic is processed through the Port of Otay Mesa.

The Border Patrol has approximately 2,100 agents working on the border in the San Ysidro area out of the San Diego sector.

The port of Blaine has two pedestrian lanes, 14 lanes for passenger vehicles, and three commercial lanes. There are approximately 375 employees that work at four facilities in Blaine:

The Peace Arch crossing on Interstate 5 (POV/Passenger), Pacific Highway (POV/Commercial), Burlington Northern Rail and Amtrak, and Drayton Harbor and Blaine Marinas. There are also 125 Border Patrol agents working out of the Blaine sector.

Both ports have mobile x-ray vans, various types of busters, range finders, radiation detectors, fiber optic scopes, and radiation portals. Blaine also uses rail x-ray equipment.

Agriculture

The Port of San Ysidro has 32 agriculture positions including one canine, Otay Mesa passenger has 9 agriculture positions and the Port of Otay Mesa has 11 agriculture positions to inspect cargo. The most frequent imports through Otay Mesa are tomatoes, peppers and jicama. The most common commodities seized are pork products, apples, poultry products, avocados, and citrus related fruits. In FY 2003 there were 42,699 interceptions of plant material and 6,644 interceptions of meat and poultry. The Port of Otay Mesa agriculture specialists processed 17,056 produce trucks and had 1,727 pest interceptions.

Blaine has 25 agricultural employees who inspect a wide variety of products. Hothouse tomatoes, cut flowers, and potted plants are the most common products coming through the cargo lanes. A continuing issue is beef and other ruminant animal proteins, used for both pet food and human consumption, coming from Canada. The agriculture specialists ensure that all of the proper permits are in place. Another issue is poultry: Canada recently had an outbreak of avian flu and all poultry products are being confiscated.

Photo Credit: James Tourtellotte

An average "busy" day at Blaine.

In the passenger lanes, the big issue is tropical fruit sold in Vancouver, Canada, which is infested with Mediterranean fruit fly larvae. In fiscal year 2004, agriculture specialists have destroyed or refused entry to 17,278 foreign cut flowers, 26,128 kilograms of prohibited or infested plants or seeds, 6,957 kilograms of fruits and vegetables, and have rejected 191,822 kilograms of prohibited meat products.

Blaine is also unique in that it has an agriculture manifest review team that works to target high-risk shipments before they arrive at the port.

Not so different after all

These two cities may be different in population demographics and weather, but they are also very similar. The ports of entry are a contrast in the numbers of people and the amount and type of cargo that passes through them into the United States. For example, the Port of San Ysidro processes more pedestrians in one day than the Port of Blaine does in one year.

The CBP officers and agriculture specialists that work on the borders share the same concerns about processing legitimate travelers and cargo as quickly and as thoroughly as possible while keeping terrorists and their weapons out of the country. They strive to keep the pests and diseases that could harm America’s agriculture and livestock from entering the United States, and they work hard to stop the smugglers of illegal drugs and migrants.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees that work at these ports are as equally dedicated to the mission of the Agency to safeguard our borders as any of the employees that work at the other more than 300 United States’ ports of entry. EC

Comparison of inspections and seizures

	Blaine, Washington	San Ysidro/Otay Mesa, California
Commercial Trucks	370,627	698,228 - Otay Mesa
Privately owned vehicles (POV)	2,296,170	22,091,599 - Combined
Privately owned vehicles (POV)	22,750	7,874,109 - Combined
Buses	12,989	160,729 - Combined
Trains	1,440	231 - Otay Mesa
Vessels	130	0
Containers	469,594	3,356 - Otay Mesa
Privately Owned Aircraft	0	3,779 - San Ysidro
CBP Officers	Seizures	Seizures
Heroin	2 for .01 pounds	11 for 33 pounds
Cocaine	10 for 213 pounds	44 for 1,231 pounds
Marijuana	194 for 10,651 pounds	1,242 for 105,595 pounds
Currency	56 for $3,032,201	44 for $258,145
Arrests	487	1,719
Border Patrol Agents	Seizures	Seizures
Heroin	0	5 for 4 ounces
Marijuana	18 for 1,264 pounds	390 for 27,508 pounds
Cocaine	3 for 148 pounds	11 for 120 pounds
Arrests	146	9,600