Homeless camps strain environment

[The Straight Story]

Homeless camps strain environment

Doug Darling of Friends of Lake Chabot talks to Bill Wiley, a homeless man, about the homeless encampment on a island in the pond around White Slough. (Chris Riley/Times-Herald)
Bill Wiley is a man with no other place to go. He said he's been living in Vallejo's various homeless encampments since 2002.

Originally from Concord, the 49-year-old Army veteran said he lives among about 30 homeless men and women in the White Slough area and uses "the pond" for bathing and the tulles as a toilet.

...

Tweedy said authorities are familiar with several encampments in the River Park area, the vacant area behind Carls Jr. on Sonoma Boulevard, and in the wetland area near Raley's.

Wiley's "neighborhood" consists of several tents, a couple of incapacitated cars and some makeshift shelters, all inhabited, some for many years.

The encampments are a vexing problem for environmentally conscious people like Doug Darling of Friends of Lake Chabot.

"As an environmentalist, I'm concerned about the negative impact these folks may be having on our water," Darling said. "I understand they're down on their luck, and that it could happen to anyone, but these are our wetlands, and they're creating an environmental hazard."

Many homeless people choose to stay near water hidden from plain view, for obvious reasons, Darling said. And, also for obvious reasons, their presence tends to negatively impact the area's cleanliness, he said.

"People living on our waterways create an impact," Darling said. "The question is, how do we approach that? What do we do? Obviously, these people have no place to go or they wouldn't be here."

http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_11657812?source=most_viewed

[Mojorabbit]

1. I live on a lake in Fl

there is a homeless camp near my house behind an abandoned bank. Every night at about 8 pm a drunk person starts screaming and cursing...loudly. I don't enjoy going out into my yard anymore. Fishing is no fun out on the lake because the loud cursing seems to up my stress level. I am so ambivalent on what to do. I do homeless food sharing at the downtown park and I don't want to be a NIMBY but this guy is making me crazy.

[Life Long Dem]

14. Maybe if it spread to some Repukes neighborhood they would wake up.

[bdamomma]

18. yea, those homeless people should camp out on their front lawns.

[bobbolink]

2. HEY, give us pills, and put us out of your misery!

You're much more caring than Limpballs!

[Earth_First]

3. *sigh*

Seems to me that this man is more concerned about the environment than his fellow man...

[DRoseDARs]

7. Your username and your post are horribly ironic.

I'm just sayin'. :shrug: ;)

[Earth_First]

17. I love irony...it's delicious aint it? n/t

[JVS]

4. Provide them with housing. They need a habitat every bit as much as the flora and fauna

[kestrel91316]

5. If it's anything like Los Angeles, there is a LARGE population of

chronically homeless who don't WANT "help" because getting in a shelter or other housing means they have to give up the drugs and alcohol they prefer.

We've had an intermittent "colony" of them near my office for years, and they live to drink and drug, and refuse assistance. I am not so sympathetic to my own local homeless population as I once was. Particularly when they urinate and defecate on my property in plain view in broad daylight.

Maybe we should just let the addicted homeless indulge their addictions to their hearts' content in special addict housing away from families and kids and those who REALLY want to change. I don't know what the solution is, but what we are doing is not working.

[readmoreoften]

19. Only 30% of homeless people nationwide are addicted to substances.

Many are simply mentally ill. The rest are poor. A census was taken by an advocacy group about a year or so ago.

[originalpckelly]

6. Trees and reeds or people.

I go with people.

[2Design]

8. we could provide homes, shelters, etc - reinstitute mental health places that reagan closed

more places for vets whose minds are screw up from killing innocent people or killing in general and what that does to the mind for people who are not normally mean

[angrycarpenter]

9. No one loves you when you're down.

Chronic homeless are a symptom of an almost non-existent mental health system in this country. In a perfect world many of these people would have been treated for addiction and mental illness long ago. Many of the chronic homeless I have known are profoundly mentally ill. No one cares about them until they flip out and hurt someone and then they go to jail and come out just as disturbed. We used to have mental hospitals in this country but they are a popular target for budget cuts. No one cares to do anything about the problem. Even on this liberal website the calls for more mental hospitals are few.

[Deja Q]

10. No one loves you when you're up either. (pun NOT intended)

Hell, in this society, I should go around and ask people what "love" means to them.

:popcorn:

[ConcernedCanuk]

12. I should go around and ask people what "love" means to them

.
.
.

My landlady lately says she "loves" me

but get off her property within a month

go figure . . .

[here_is_to_hope]

11. I checked out Doug Darlings' home out of curiosity and....

the street view on Google shows an 'Obama' sign in front...

[4 t 4]

13. Lake Chabo owes it to those people

to house them and help them and place them. Find them homes and jobs and counseling and anything they need to begin with to help them. Anytime people are here (in this world )you owe them -period. Sorry buy I think it's that simple. They are here in the United States or any other country they deserve everything and more. In the world they deserve everything and more because they were born but especially in the US. None of us had the choice to be born-right so everyone that has to suffer the endurance of being born deserves a comforting life-no? Everyone deserves to be comfortable and there is no reason it can't be like that. There is enough money and good will in this world for everyone to be given a chance.

[undeterred]

15. There but for the grace of god go any one of us.

Don't think it couldn't happen to you. Take away health insurance, and millions of people with treatable mental health problems find it much harder to cope. Unemployment insurance runs out, and the person who is down on their luck finds they have nowhere to call home. Try living outside for a week with no vehicle, no cash, no food, and no where to sleep or feel safe. The cleanliness of the area is not going to be the first thing on your mind.

[4 t 4]

16. Tthe cleanliness of the area

is not going to be the first thing on your mind.----- What who said anything about that ??

[varelse]

20. Good thing I kept reading

Darling said he thinks exposing the problem is a first step.


"How will homeless issues ever be addressed if people are not made aware of it," he said. "Problems require solutions, and solutions will not be found in the darkness of silence."


Darling said he doesn't believe the city or the community should expect anything to improve unless they are willing to be a part of the change.


"Does anybody want change?" he asked, "Or are we content with the way things are?"