[ACT] Trees in Hahamongna
SSL
steve_lamb57 at sbcglobal.net
Sun Nov 1 15:48:28 PST 2009
Well weve had almost thirty years now of chit chat....Lets take some of these invasive things out.
Wait a second...They are only taking out the non natives for the proposed road? $$^&#@@#$@%$*&&)!!!! What the Arroyo Seco foundation rather than the City is doing these projects? Hmmmmmmm Thats REALLY REALLY REALLY odd. Looks like more of that Not For Profit Profiteering.....I remember a time when Tim would have thought the people doing that were immoral pirates....
--- On Sun, 11/1/09, Meb787 at aol.com <Meb787 at aol.com> wrote:
From: Meb787 at aol.com <Meb787 at aol.com>
Subject: Re: [ACT] Trees in Hahamongna
To: steve_lamb57 at sbcglobal.net
Cc: act at fourpalms.org, eti at fourpalms.org
Date: Sunday, November 1, 2009, 2:25 PM
Steve,
What didn't come across in the article is that most people were in favor of
removing the non-natives in Hahamongna. They just felt it should be done
in a gradual manner over a long period of time rather than just clear cutting
the mature non-natives.
The issue is particularly relevant on the Annex where 30 some non-native
trees in the way of the formerly proposed road way are slated to be
removed. This is even more peculiar in that the Annex is a landscaped
area and the trees in question were planted alongside the trail to provide
shade. The Arroyo Seco Public Lands ordinance calls for the
removal of non-natives in habitat restoration areas not in landscaped
areas. Otherwise, what about all the non-natives in the Central
Arroyo too?
Incidentally, none of the other non-natives on the Annex, other than those
in the way of a future road, are called out to be removed in the Annex
plan.
The article also quotes Tim Brick who supports the removal of the
non-natives. What is not mentioned in the article, however, is that the
Arroyo Seco Foundation is now the implementing agency for the following projects in Hahamongna, some of which will require tree
removal: the Basin Multi-Use
Project, the Surface Water Treatment Plant, the Storm Drain Outlet BMPs, the
Streamcourse Widening, the Water Conservation Pool, and the West Side Ground
Water Recharge Basins. For the
first of these projects, the Basin Multi-use Project, the Foundation is
requesting minimum funding of $3.784 million with a total project cost of $7.255
million. For more information on
this, go to www.ladpw.org/lawaterplan.
The water projects are very important since they will reduce our dependence
on imported water but nonetheless this seems a bit of a conflict...
Mary B.
In a message dated 11/1/2009 12:28:52 P.M. Pacific Standard Time,
steve_lamb57 at sbcglobal.net writes:
The invasive non native trees and other flora were to be
removed from the very start of the plan. This at first included even the
grass where soccer is played. It's supposed to be a NATURAL
area...............
.
--- On Sun, 11/1/09,
Meb787 at aol.com <Meb787 at aol.com> wrote:
From:
Meb787 at aol.com <Meb787 at aol.com>
Subject: [ACT] Trees in
Hahamongna
To: act at fourpalms.org, eti at fourpalms.org
Date:
Sunday, November 1, 2009, 10:21 AM
Station
Fire raises new concerns about wildlife, city's plans for
Hahamongna
By Dan Abendschein, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/31/2009 08:22:55 PM
PDT
PASADENA - A fight at a
recent city forestry committee meeting over tree removal could be a
portent of things to come as Pasadena moves forward with plans for the
Hahamongna Watershed Park.
New questions about what to
do with the park's non-native trees, as well as other ecological
issues, have surfaced in the wake of the Station Fire, which burned
250 miles of land in the Angeles National Forest, including an area
directly above the Hahamongna.
A small, but insistent group
of community activists has already begun calling for more studies into
the future of the park and believe city plans for the watershed -
including removing non-native trees - should not go forward without
more information about the fire's impacts.
"We've seen animal
populations devastated by the fire," said resident Lori Paul, who is
closely following the issue. "Even non-native trees are useful for
(animals) ... a lot of animals depend on these trees."
City officials have been in
discussions with the U.S. Forest Service, which is advising the city
to adopt an entirely different approach - removing even more of the
non-native trees.
The fear is that non-natives
will begin spreading into recently burned areas, crowding out natural
species that would normally grow there, said Rosa Laveaga, who directs
the city's projects along the Arroyo Seco.
Tim Brick, a biologist who
works in the Arroyo Seco, believes opponents of removing the trees
don't have science on their side.
"The logic is quite the
opposite of what they are saying," said Brick. "It doesn't make a lot
of sense at all."
Nevertheless, the city's
Urban Forestry Advisory Committee has sided with community activists,
recommending last month against removing eight non-native trees in a
popular walking area called Sunset Overlook.
"We basically didn't feel we
were qualified to make a decision on forest ecology," said Chris Peck,
who heads the committee.
More meetings on Hahamongna
will be coming up soon. A master plan for 30 recently acquired acres
in the north section of the park has been in the works for the last
two years and will finally go before the City Council in January,
Public Works Director Martin Pastucha said.
The council could still
approve removing the non-native trees at Sunset Overlook - or anywhere
else, since the forestry committee is only an advisory board.
Meanwhile, the Forest Service
has been busy studying the impacts of the Station Fire on the burn
areas above the park. Besides the potential invasion of non-native
trees and vegetation, there are also concerns about debris slides and
flooding from the Arroyo Seco, as well as the effects on local animal
populations.
But despite the ecological
changes from the fire, there are no plans to significantly alter the
immediate plans for Hahamongna, nor the long- term plan for the park,
said Pastucha.
That may be because city
officials had already sought to address within the plan many of the
issues and concerns raised by the fire, including the problem of
non-native plants creeping into burn areas. City officials, for
instance, have long considered removing non-native plants as the best
policy for the area. Now that policy could be getting more urgency.
Another concern for
biologists studying the burn areas is the potential for increased
debris flows and flooding at the 1,200-space parking lot used by JPL
employees, which is located very near the Arroyo Seco.
That parking lot is already
scheduled to be removed as part of the city's long-range plan. A
smaller parking lot of 200 spots will be retained but farther away
from the river. In its place would be a series of natural pond areas
to help restore the habitat of fish and reptiles in the river.
The habitat restoration is
important, said Brick, but the city will be powerless to stop the
effects of the Station Fire on some animal populations.
A $2.5 million river
restoration project completed last year by Brick's group, the Arroyo
Seco Foundation, re-established the habitat of a local fish called the
Arroyo chub in two areas below the Hahamongna park. The fish, which
once thrived in the river, was reintroduced into the area by the group
last year.
Biologists studying the park
say the fish now have little chance of survival because of the
expected increase in mud and sediment that will flow into the river
this winter when the rains begin.
"They are going to be wiped
out," said Robert Fisher, a biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey.
Trout farther up in the river
also will be seriously threatened, he said.
Debris flows will also
increase safety concerns for park users. There are dozens of trails
used by hikers, bikers, and horseback riders, and some of them lead
into the center of the park, along the river.
These issues will mean the
city will need to be vigilant, said Pastucha, but the bottom line, he
said, is that people will go where they want to in the park,
regardless of safety warnings.
Forest Service lands just
north of the park are already closed to the public. The city will be
posting signs within the park warning people not to go in, said
Pastucha.
But the city won't bother
trying to put up fences or other barriers, he added, because people
will easily go around them if they want to.
"I don't think there is a
barrier that will stop people from going into areas if they want to go
in," said Pastucha. "We do have concerns about people getting in
there, but all we can do is let people know it is closed."
dan.abendschein at sgvn.com
(626) 962-8811 ext.
4451
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