They say tomatoes, I say Hahamongna

"The Devil's Gate Reservoir Sediment Removal and Management Project [will host] an estimated maximum of 425 truck round trips per day." [six days a week, for five years.] dpw.lacounty.gov

Let me preface this by saying, that which the County is now calling Devil's Gate Reservoir is actually, mostly, for all of us who hike, bike, gallop, run, jog, stroll, and admire the acreage, that which the County calls Devil's Gate Reservoir, is in reality, primarily, Hahamongna Natural Watershed Park.

I got nervous, the moment I saw they were morphing the name.

As to the sediment abatement plan, you know, if we can put a man on the moon, and we did; if we can put a robot on Mars, and we have; then why can't we address a silt-removal problem at a local dam with a certain amount of sophistication?

Moving dirt in trucks, four hundred-plus trucks per day? Apparently, were it not for the internal combustion engine, we'd be hitching up the mule train and grabbing our shovels. Is this the best our brilliant County, and their highly-paid scientists, engineers, consultants and more consultants, can imagine, configure?

I don't know all the possible options, not by a long shot. But sluicing seemed worth pursuing. As to that option, the consultants hired another consultant who printed some xxx-page report to say that sluicing wouldn't work. Well, maybe not. Who is this gentleman, I asked? Oh, the best in class, they answered, an expert from San Diego State Uni.

Fair enough. But we're talking big budget here. So, I ask the County, you went to San Diego and, what, the mule wouldn't move? Like, you couldn't afford to call the Netherlands, for instance? Japan? Denmark? Just one consultant, for a multi-million dollar project?

So the County position at the meeting today -- trucking dirt. Four hundred truck trips a day, six months a year, for five years -- worst-case scenario. (When officials start positing a worst-case scenario, they're talking as good as it gets.)

If this plan goes through, I say, follow the money. Look closely, very closely, at the dump truck, bulldozer, and crane contracts. That'll be a helluva scoop.

Anyway, I found this clip. If the County proceeds, here's our wildlife, here's our Hahamongna Natural Watershed Park. Dig it.