PROTECTING YOUR PROPERTY AFTER A FIRE: RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE CALIFORNIA LANDSCAPE CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION
September 7, 2009 (San Diego’s East County)–Fire destroys hundreds of homes each year in California and often burns thousands of acres of land. If your property was damaged by fire, the California Landscape Contractors Association (CLCA) is pleased to offer some recommendations to help your landscape recover and to help protect your property. In general, many plants and trees are exposed to fire in their native environment and many will recover in the spring and should be left alone. Any pruning or cutting back of fire-damaged plants should not be done until the plants show signs of recovery. Removing bark, leaves or limbs can expose the plants to sun damage. Heat from the sun can actually kill the tissue beneath the bark on some trees. It is best to leave them alone until new growth appears. Some plants recover faster than others. Burned plants can still be green underneath and still have healthy roots. If similar plants appear to be recovering, wait a few more weeks before removing damaged parts. Full damage to woody plants may not be apparent until the next spring or summer season. Re-examine them at that time and then carefully remove damaged wood to make room for new growth. Ash on the plants will not cause damage and should be left alone. Damaged trees that have branches that are cracked or overhanging homes, driveways etc., that can be a future hazard, should be removed. Trees that have shifted in the soil due to wind or burn damage and those with burned roots should be removed as well, because they are now considered unstable and could potentially fall. If fire has completely burned off all the bark around the entire circumference of the tree and/or fire has burned deep into the trunk, the tree should also be removed. Fertilization is not recommended. Immediately fertilizing can cause damage to the roots and cause additional harm to the plants. Waiting also gives the soil time to recover. Wait until the spring and fertilize at half rates with a product containing nitrogen. Do not fertilize with manures at that time, since they contain a high concentration of salts that can injure roots. Plastic irrigation lines, parts and drains may be damaged. Check your existing irrigation system for leaks and damage and document them for your insurance company. Also shut off irrigation water immediately after a fire to help prevent erosion and further damage. It is generally not recommended to water plants immediately after a fire. If your area is experiencing a drought and water is necessary, water gently by hand. Severely burned soils do not absorb water well. Make sure the flow of water is slow enough to be absorbed. Also examine and clean concrete drains and swales. Many become filled with ash and mud during a fire. In areas where protective plants are removed or destroyed, soil becomes vulnerable to erosion. Soil erosion can happen slowly or it can happen very quickly in a heavy rain. The exact measures needed for your property are based on your soil type, slope grade, home location, weather, water availability etc. Also areas exposed by fire can open the door for invasive species and weeds. In some areas erosion control materials or mechanical control measures may need to be applied. Contact your local CalTrans office or local forest service for guidelines in your area. Water flow is an important factor of any erosion plan. Never underestimate the power of storm water and debris. Evaluating the area and planning for storm events is a critical first step to protecting your property and improper or inadequate measures can aggravate potential problems. If you need help with erosion control or fire prevention landscaping, be sure to hire a licensed professional who specializes in that area of expertise. Ask for references, insurance certificates and request to see their license. You’ll want to protect your home and your neighbors’ as well. It is also an important time to evaluate your property’s landscape and damage. Take a look at what worked and what did not and try to determine how to make your property safer in case of a future fire. For future reference, it is also a good idea to keep records and photos of your landscape as part of your home inventory list for insurance purposes. For helpful information about fire prevention landscaping please go to: www.clca.org/clca/education/fire-protection.php
EDITORIAL: LEADERSHIP NEEDED IN WASHINGTON TO KEEP FARMS VIABLE
By Doug Mosebar California Farm Bureau President September 2, 2009 –Our nation may be focused on the health care debate, but here in California the focus is centered on how farmers can survive economically without water and with depressed prices. Our challenges are clearly visible to the world as acreage is fallowed, rural farm communities are devastated and dairies have lost $2 billion to $3 billion in farm equity due to unstable milk prices in the past year alone. Acknowledging the fact that California family farms and ranches play a critical role in maintaining a domestic food supply, high-ranking officials visited California last week to see the situation in person and to attend meetings where Farm Bureau was represented on all fronts. In discussions, family farmers and ranchers stressed that the problems are real and that officials must go back to Washington more determined to find answers. Officials came to get a firsthand look and to listen and talk to those most impacted. Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Reps. Jim Costa and Dennis Cardoza organized meetings and tours for visitors including House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan and Deputy Secretary of the Interior David Hayes. In the series of meetings in the Central Valley, all stated that the Obama administration needs to do more to get water flowing in the valley, short- and long-term, by revisiting the biological opinions on protected fish that have worsened water shortages, and by taking into account the human and economic crises that have been created in the process. At a special meeting hosted by Sen. Feinstein, participants stated that it’s not only the Westside that is suffering. There are avocado trees being stumped in Southern California and productive fields being idled north of Sacramento, raising fear amongst all farmers that water shortages will erode their ability to ensure a domestic food supply for our nation. In providing comment, participating farmers and ranchers stressed that any water solution needs to be comprehensive with short- and long-term strategies—solutions that take a balanced approach to the health of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and meaningful water development, while also addressing the needs of depressed rural communities and the environment. In that vein, parties should not be fighting with one another over a shrinking pot of water, but should be looking for ways that everyone can thrive. Most acknowledged that the elements of a water solution must include continued improvements in water efficiency, water recycling and desalination. Also critical are rapid progress on the Two Gates and intertie projects, new water storage aboveground and water storage underground, as well as improved water conveyance. Speakers reminded officials that a healthy farming sector generates economic activity in both our rural communities and our cities, while assuring continued food security for the entire nation. Solutions must then balance food production and jobs with environmental protection. In separate meetings with Secretary Vilsack, he heard loud and clear that dairy farmers can’t wait another few months for milk prices to improve. Vilsack stated that while he did not have immediate answers, he will go back more determined to find solutions. Congressman Hoyer was told jobs and operations are moving to Mexico because of excessive regulations, and that California agriculture needs to be seen as a national treasure—you can’t just be concerned about meeting Endangered Species Act environmental regulations when entire communities are without jobs, food production is halted and revenues are lost. We are confident that these visits will give our challenges a stronger voice in Washington. It is up to all of us to create awareness, tell our stories and work toward collaborative solutions with our state and federal legislators. We are Farm Bureau and our strength and persistence in working toward positive and productive outcomes is critical. Stay active and stay involved. The views in this editorial reflect the views of its author and do not necessarily reflect the views of East County Magazine. If you wish to submit an editorial for consideration, contact editor@eastcountymagazine.org.
WILL POWER REPORT: ANOTHER EXPENSIVE FIRE?
Nothing but the Truth! September 4, 2009– Big surprise! Another fire in LA County will cost millions to extinguish. Firefighters come from Shasta County to get in on the juicy overtime. Private contractors lease out bulldozers and aircraft at ridiculous rates to save the homes of the foolish rich who build in canyons and on ridge-tops. The nature of chaparral is that it periodically burns. Without man’s interference, it burns every five to ten years at low intensity, which allows roots to re-grow and many seeds to germinate. Most fires are started by lightning, burn a few days or weeks, and go out naturally. Then developers start putting homes on ridgetops, suppressing fires, and the fuel load starts to build up. When fire finally hits, the fire is so hot roots burn up completely, the ground is baked to clay, and nothing can grow in the area for years. It would be cheaper to force people who build in fire areas to clear their own land of brush, allow fires to burn naturally, and stop the process of fighting fires with machines. The conflagration which recently saw one-half of the Angeles Forest burn up is a testimony to the failed land-use and fire planning in our urban-rural interface. What’s worse, in five years, many of the same areas will be ready to burn again. The definition of insanity is doing the same stupid things over and over, and if our fire policies are not insane, why do we see the same old, same old fires burning in the same old, same old neighborhoods. We need to revise fire codes, force homeowners to clear their own land, and change insurance laws so we don’t keep paying for the same fire every few years.
EDITORIAL: JUSTICE BEFORE POLITICS
By Assemblyman Joel Anderson September 6, 2009 (San Diego’s East County)– Richard Allen Clements kept his foot firmly on the gas pedal as he watched two 9-year-old girls glance back at him and start running. Moments later, the short lives of Christie Turner and Adina Gonzalez ended. Clements was fleeing the C.H.P. after an officer attempted to pull him over for driving erratically. The officers abandoned their pursuit when they saw him approaching Lemon Crest Elementary School at 1:30 on a school day. But Clements did not slow his getaway. That was in 1998. Now, in 2009, Clements will likely walk free, just 11 years into a 32 year sentence, after a court overruled the legal theory behind Clement’s conviction. Clements was convicted under a legal theory known as the “felony murder rule.” It says that a person may be charged with murder if they commit a felony that is inherently dangerous to human life and kill a person in the process, even if it was not the intent to kill. The court ruling setting Clements free declared that fleeing an officer in a vehicle is not inherently dangerous to human life. Many in law enforcement, including the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, strongly disagree with the court’s conclusion. They are the ones forced to witness such tragedies first-hand. In a letter of support I recently received, the Riverside Police Officer’s Association described suspects evading an officer in a vehicle as “a one-ton, often out of control, missile.” I introduced Assembly Bill 509 to correct this misguided court decision. A.B. 509 simply declares that evading an officer in your car is inherently dangerous to human life. This change would ensure that murderers like Clements will never again receive the same punishment as someone who kills a pedestrian after accidentally running a stop sign. While such legislation may seem common-sense to you and me, A.B. 509 unfortunately faces a tough fight in the legislature. Overcrowded prisons are currently a reality. My Republican colleagues and I have proposed solutions to address this issue responsibly. However, our bills are regularly killed in committee on a party-line vote. Unfortunately, the majority party is limiting the debate to their only solution – oppose any law that would put another person in prison and conduct a state-sanctioned jail break. AB 509 deserves to be passed into law. It does not create a “new” crime. It simply prevents an out-of-touch court from eliminating an important standard of justice. Christie Turner and Adina Gonzalez would be 19 this year, had they not been coldly murdered with a Ford F-150. Richard Allen Clements, a cowardly criminal with no regard for human life, will walk free this year at the age of 28, with a lifetime of freedom still ahead of him. If you agree with me that allowing criminals to walk free is morally outrageous, then please send a letter of support for A.B. 509 to my office at Assemblymember.Anderson@assembly.ca.gov. I believe lawmakers have a duty to stop gross injustices and with your letters of support, we will send a clear message to the legislature that politics should take a backseat to justice. For more information about supporting Assembly Bill 509, contact the office of Assemblyman Joel Anderson at (916) 319-2077 The opinions expressed in this editorial reflect the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of East County Magazine. If you wish to submit an editorial for consideration, please contact editor@eastcountymagazine.org.
IT’S OFFICIAL: MOTHER GOOSE PARADE IS SAVED!
September 6, 2009 (El Cajon) – Organizers of the Mother Goose Parade have voted to save East County’s most cherished holiday tradition, after an outpouring of community do nations raised enough to cover a significant portion of the costs, East County Magazine has learned. “The parade will be scaled down to reduce costs,” Monica Zech, spokesperson for the City of El Cajon, confirmed in an e-mail. Donations are still needed, she said, adding, “Thank you to those who have already donated—especially the children who have sent in their own donations to help save the parade!” The 67th annual Mother Goose Parade will be held on November 22, with Cox Cable as title sponsor. Names of the Grand Marshal and other participants have not yet been announced…with one notable exception. Celebrity impersonator Sam “Captain Jack” Sparrow, a Johnny Depp look-alike who commandeered the El Cajon City Council meeting recently to draw attention to the need to raise $350,000 to prevent cancellation of this year’s parade, thanked supporters on his Facebook page for standing behind him and encouraging him in “staying the course to a dream” for the sake of the children and charities that benefit from the parade. Then he disclosed, “Unfortunately I have to announce that…YOU WILL BE SEEING MY UGLY MUG IN THE MOTHER GOOSE PARADE.” Then he added with heartfelt joy felt throughout the community, “THE PARADE WILL GO ON!!” Watch for details and/or make a donation at www.mothergooseparade.org.