“Nine thousand gallons [of sewage] a month are going into the wastewater system. That’s the storm drain system, not the sewer. The storm drain carries it straight to Santa Monica Bay,” said Barry Coe, regarding the monthly wastewater of the 600 recreational vehicles (RV) that are being used by homeless persons in the Harbor Gateway area—located in the far southern part of Los Angeles—where he lives.
According to the 2023 point-in-time count released last month by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, there are over 9,280 homeless people living in about 6,800 RVs in Los Angeles County.
Mr. Coe, who formerly ran an RV business, estimates those numbers translate to nearly 102,000 gallons, or about the volume of 11 large U-Haul trucks of sewage each month….