A pack of roaming pigs is one of the jarring images NBC Bay Area showed when first reporting on the fears of the Holiday Lakes Association in Morgan Hill, near Anderson Reservoir.
But now, since residents have not been able to get rid of the pigs, there’s new video that shows the pigs have become bigger and more assertive.
“So, the large ones are probably anywhere from (300) to 500 pounds, and they’re usually in a sounder, a group of pigs, that then has a bunch of babies. And now, the little babies, even those are (100) to 200 pounds, and they’re much more prevalent,” Morgan Hill resident Harris Hall said.
“I just can’t believe they’re not afraid of anything. Usually they’ll hide or something like that. You could scare them off. But they only run a couple of feet. I literally have to chase them out of the yard,” resident Jay Cooper said.
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The homeowners group said the California Department of Fish and Wildlife has not been responsive. But they say the Santa Clara Valley Water District should help since they believe the problem started when the district drained the reservoir as part of the seismic retrofit project.
“We think trapping in the lakebed is certainly possible -- that area is owned by Valley Water -- or exclusionary fencing,” Hall said.
The association is collecting comments to be part of an environmental impact report on the dam project being submitted by the district to the state on Nov. 1.
At this point, the water district is encouraging residents to file their comments for the EIR under the problem of invasive species. But the agency remains adamant: The pigs are a state responsibility, not the water district’s or the county’s.
