Authorities have chased the homeless out of Northern California riverside encampments and razed makeshift cardboard and plywood shelters.
Watsonville officials say the homeless camps are polluting Pajaro River water. The Santa Cruz Sentinel says Watsonville is under pressure from the state to put a halt to decades-old living arrangements that are damaging river water quality.
Police officers warned the homeless earlier this week that they would be forced to leave. City crews moved in Wednesday with bulldozers to demolish the encampments.
Watsonville water quality specialist Robert Ketley says the city will be clearing camps monthly. In the past, the city cleared away the camps once or twice a year.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
