Readers comments: April 21, 2023

Groundwater flooding in north Claremont shouldn’t be a surprise
Dear editor:
Back in the 1970s and early ‘80s, before a large amount of development in north Claremont, when the area was mostly alluvial fan sage scrub and lemon groves, anyone walking up Padua Avenue below Mt. Baldy Road could notice a natural spring bubbling up. Now there is an aptly named street near there called Deep Springs. Of course, the developments went through despite concerns by the City of Claremont’s Environmental Commission, various state and federal agencies, biologists, and environmentalists.
See: Claremont Hills Environmental Impact Report, available at the local library.
Felis Concolor
Claremont

Contact Six Basins board about Claremont flooding
Dear editor:
For many years behind the scenes Six Basins Watermaster has been conducting monthly meetings in Claremont at Three Valleys Municipal Water District’s Miramar facility.
The nine-member board representing the regional water agencies has been working on a strategic plan and studying groundwater basin models brought to the board by paid consultants in order to ensure proper spreading of water into the region’s groundwater basins and strategic plans to monitor ground water usage.
But now Mother Nature has struck, and a human error occurred, as recent release of water from the San Antonio Dam caused flooding in the backyards of Claremont homes. Who was to blame? Claremont residents asked. Was it a communication breakdown between residents, the San Antonio Dam operations department, Six Basins Watermaster, or Claremont City Hall?
For years paid consultants of the Six Basins Watermasters Board have been bringing to the board modeling scenarios of water issues, charts and studies of water issues problems and scenarios that could occur. But this incident caught everyone by surprise.
It’s inexcusable that the flooding of Claremont homes took place considering all the studies made over the years to address such issues. Climate change and extreme weather conditions have taken the watermasters’ experts and paid consultants by surprise.
What’s needed now is transparency and opening up of communication to those residents of Claremont impacted by errors of judgement, not the muting of public outcry.
You can help. Contact Six Basins Watermasters Board and attend the next meeting. Board members include Jennifer Stark; Toby Moore; Ben Lewis; Chris Diggs; John Robles; Teri Leyton; Jody Roberto; and Robert Robinson.
John Mendoza
Pomona

The gun debate continues
Dear editor:
Should 8th grade hallway bullies that claim to read minds or tell the future be allowed to have a firearm?
With rampant cognitive dissonance and frothing-at-the-mouth nonsensical opinion, Messrs. Ring and Levine [Readers’ comments, April 14] tried to refute my factual citation that firearms used by bad guys during a violent assault is less than 8.3% a year [Readers’ comments, March 17]. Not only do they look foolish to the 3,000,000 people a year that actually defend themselves with a firearm, I must point out that under California’s “common sense” red flag law — passed by anti-gun extremists — their emotionally unhinged letters about me can now ironically be used against them by any of their coworkers, family, acquaintances and police to search their homes and confiscate any firearm they find. For the next five years they will be at the mercy of everyone as it will be illegal for them to protect their families or themselves!
It seems that “guilty until proven innocent,” confiscation of private property, and denial of civil rights are their idea of freedom.
Leslie Watkins
Claremont