Huge piles of trash and debris from homeless encampments pollute Coyote Creek, upstream of Berryessa Road, in San Jose, in January, 2022.
They have trapped endangered steelhead trout with shopping carts, cut down trees, started wildfires, left discarded needles, and built makeshift structures in areas prone to winter flooding. Water district workers also have been facing growing numbers of threats of violence when they venture into creeks to do their jobs.
The move follows an announcement by San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan in March that the city also will do more to clear encampments on creek property it owns, after state water regulators had threatened the city with fines because the encampments violate water quality, trash and pollution laws. Langton said that numerous non-profit groups and local government agencies need to better coordinate their efforts to build more housing, including interim housing projects that contain tiny homes or trailers, which he said are preferable to large overnight emergency shelters with rows of cots.
Currently, people already can be arrested for trespassing on property owned by the water district or other agencies. In the latest effort by Mahan and the water district, however, both agencies are relying on environmental issues and environmental laws to support the removal of encampments. If the water district’s board passes the ordinance next month, it would be enforced by local police and sheriff’s departments, Codianne said.