Friends of Sausal Creek

by Fire Safety vs. Endangered Species in the Sausal Creek Watershed

By Pete Veilleux

Since the 1992 Oakland Hills fire, the City of Oakland has coordinated a substantial fire abatement program throughout the hills. Goats chewing away at the flora, and the weed-whacking work crews are parts of this important program. The commendable aim of this program is to deplete the amount of flammable material in the hills. However, the city has been facing a substantial amount of criticism over the indiscriminate removal of native species by the fire abatement crews and the goats. A recent example is the cutting down of a federally listed endangered species, the pallid manzanita (Arctostaphylos pallida), by a city crew. This came after the loss of a population of this rare species on Manzanita Flat along Skyline Boulevard by the goats. Other Oakland Hills sites are further threatened by shading from redwoods and Monterey pines that were planted in the hills.

According to the Fish and Wildlife Service, the pallid manzanita "is found only in the northern Diablo Range of California in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. There are 13 documented localities of the pallid manzanita, and many of these are declining." The larger population of the two remaining "stable" ones is located on Huckleberry Ridge, where over 50 percent of the habitat has been developed. The primary threats to the species are the effects of fire suppression, housing development, and shading and competition from alien and sometimes native plants. One of the effects of fire suppression has been the shading out of chaparral by native and nonnative trees that were normally culled by fire. This has become a threat to the large Huckleberry Ridge population.

The Friends of Sausal Creek has documented the occurrences of more than 200 species of native plants still found in the Sausal Creek watershed. Many of these are endemic (found nowhere else) to the state of California, and some of them to the Bay Area. The Friends of Sausal Creek is committed to the restoration and preservation of the creek and its native flora and fauna.

Martin Matarrese, Parkland Resources Supervisor, Office of Parks & Recreation, states, "I think it would be helpful for the city to hire someone to survey and map fuel reduction areas for native plants and species of special concern. The map should be in a GIS format so it can be updated. This person could write a prescription for treatment and flag 'out of bounds' areas. We need to be able to differentiate between flammable vs. nonflammable natives and their tolerance to cutting. This person could train city staff on endangered and species of special concern and native plant recognition. The goal should be risk reduction with sensitivity to native plant communities."

FOSC is committed to working with the city to ensure both sound fire safety management and conservation of rare native species in the Sausal Creek watershed. For more information about native plants in the Sausal Creek Watershed and how you can help preserve them, check out www.sausalcreek.org, or call 501-FOSC.