What will happen to our trees, Altadena worries, as debris cleanup ramps up

Just feet away from the rubble of her Altadena home, Andrea Davis noticed two 3-year-old coast live oak trees that appeared to have survived the Eaton fire’s wind-fueled fury.

Surrounding the small trees were about eight other trees on her property: The five coast live oaks, the two Aleppo pines and the big stone pine – they made it through, reminders of a natural landscape so integral to this now fire-weary unincorporated town’s identity.

“The experience of living here was about living under trees,” Davis said.

Altadena’s trees not only provide benefits to the town’s environment but are part of its fabric, homeowners said.

Losing a tree to disease or natural disaster is one thing, but Davis and many in Altadena fear that surviving and healthy trees could become a victim of the upcoming debris removal process. Already, residents and experts have seen trees that have been marked with a white X indicating they could be removed.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has begun the estimated year-long process of debris removal in the burn area of both of the Palisades and Eaton fires. This phase follows the EPA, which continues to remove hazardous materials from homes, businesses and other structures.

There are about 9,500 county owned trees in the Eaton fire burn area, according to Public Works Deputy Director of Transportation Steve Burger. At least 100 of those have been removed due to being deemed a hazard or being completely destroyed.

Now, crews are scouring the area, assessing the rest of the trees that were damaged. They want to see which ones need to be removed and which can be saved or given a chance to survive.

Early on after the fire, Burger said, there wasn’t the normal oversight of utility crews.

Now, Southern California Edison’s arborists are working with the county’s arborists before making decisions on trees.

Burger said assessing all the county trees in the burn footprint will take about three to four months to complete. By then, officials hope to have a full understanding of the damage to the trees.

Los Angeles County Public Works Parkway Trees interactive map

LARGER MAP: Use the county’s full-size version of this interactive map.

 

Pasadena resident Jessica Richards, who last year fought to save an oak tree in McDonald Park, heard that utility companies were trimming and cutting down trees without oversight.

“They are one of the few things left standing that are surviving,” Richards said. “They may have a few remnants that they retrieved from the ashes and then whatever trees are still standing.”

Richards and Davis, along with several other local residents, signed a letter addressed to L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger asking that independent arborists be used to assess trees before final decisions are made about trimming or removal.

Altadena Town Councilmember Dorothy “Dot” Wong lost her home in the fire. She said people are not paying enough attention to the trees during this process, because of all the other concerns people have after losing everything.

Wong is from Hawaii and was drawn to Altadena because of its connection to nature.

“We are embedded in the gift of being able to touch nature, which is innate in all of us.” Wong said. “In Altadena we have been lucky and privileged in that way to be able to walk out the door and see the glowing mountains, see the native plants and trees.”

Former city of Pasadena forester and consulting arborist Rebecca Latta said she and her colleagues in the arborist and horticulture community are very concerned about the fate of trees on private property.

They have seen white markings on trees that experts believe was done in haste and are asking that an independent arborist go back and review all the trees marked for removal.

“We’re seeing Xs on coast live oaks with very little actual damage to the bark layer, the growing layer, mostly just scorch in the top,” Latta said.

Native trees like the coast live oak, Latta said, have adaptations that make them fire resistant. These traits can be found in their bark that can withstand scorching, an internal system that can put out new leaves if some are burned and they hold a fair amount of moisture.

“In a couple months we should see trees starting to put new green leaves on if they’re OK,” Latta said.

Mature trees are inseparable, Latta said, with defining the character of Altadena. That’s why residents are speaking up, to make sure that in rebuilding the area, that tree canopy remains.

“To lose that canopy cover is going to change the character and the climate for those people that are living there,” Latta said. “It’s of critical importance to save the mature trees that we can, to save some trees for habitat and to just not do this in haste.”

According to the Public Works Department, the Army Corps’ consultant has been assessing private trees and marking those deemed hazardous.

However, there will be a waiver available for residents to sign to not have tree hazards removed on their property.

The Army Corps said hazardous trees are assessed by California-registered and certified arborists hired by the prime contractor. Homeowners can specify if they want the army corps to save any trees within the ash footprint but trees could still be removed for the following reasons:

— The tree is dead or the arborist believes the tree will die within five years.

— The tree is in the debris clearance zone and is a hazard to crews.

“The Army Corps of Engineers and our contractors will try to save as many trees as possible,” spokesperson Susan Lee said in an email.

“The experience of living here was about living under trees. – Andrea Davis, Altadena

 

Mark Porter has worked as an arborist since 1976, and been a consultant and subject matter expert for several agencies, including CalFire, on 11 fires.

Porter said several factors must be considered when assessing whether a tree can bounce back from damage.

“As long as the cambium (inner bark) is still alive, the tree has a good chance of surviving,” Porter said.

To check if a tree is alive after a fire, scrape the bark with a knife or chisel to inspect the cambium layer. Green or white cambium indicates life, while brown or dry cambium suggests death. Porter said tests should be done in multiple spots and new growth such as buds or shoots are a sign of life.

“Would you put a loved one in hospice without clinical diagnosis or would you pull the plug if they’re on life support without an X-ray or lab results or proper medical diagnosis?”  Porter asked.

He said independent experts should be charged with assessing trees, and trees near major roads or busy intersections should be prioritized for inspection since their failure could lead to more damage or harm to the public.

Davis and her husband Steve Salinda’s home since 1998 — located north of Loma Alta Drive, near Chaney Trail —  was built around a massive coast live oak, which burned in the fire. She had been nursing it before the blaze due to a disease.

Davis said anyone who had been to her home, even for a few minutes, has been asking if her large coast live oak survived the fire.

She said the trees around her home cooled their home and supported wildlife. They have seen ravens, hawks, squirrels and even bears on the trees. Davis said she would often work outside on the terrace of her home under the cooling shade of her trees.

“People’s mental health has been demonstrated to be impacted by living with trees in a positive way,” said Davis who works as a psychologist. “It’s a positive impact on our mental health to be in nature and to be living with trees, so why would we take that if it doesn’t have to come down.”

Residents who are concerned about a tree trimming or removal they can call public works at 1-800-675-4357.