The Harsh Marsh

It's all protected, now.

The junkyard, only a few feet from the Bay, pre-dates the EPA.

The history of land development in the Bay Area is one of contradiction. 100 to 150 years ago the best land for housing, town centers, and agriculture lay miles inland from San Francisco Bay. The marshland ringing the Bay was ugly, smelly, difficult to build on, and cheap; where it was feasible, light industry moved in.

Now environmental restrictions make it extremely costly and more difficult to build next to the Bay than on the inland areas. (Also, advances in earthquake science require that construction be able to withstand liquefaction.) Existing businesses, often polluting, are grandfathered. (They can't be seized without "just compensation"--This is America!)

The harsh marsh was, is, and ever shall be.