A report from the Habitat Restoration Committee by Bob Byrnes
Mackenzie Taylor of our Committee (on right), with two ACE crew members, crew leader Niki (center) and crew member Mike (left), posing in front of the heavy-duty chipper ACE brought with them to chip Arundo. You can see some of the resulting chips in the background.
We finished our 2017 partnership with ACE (American Conservation Experience) last Thursday. We worked together for two weeks, with a break in between to let the heat wave dissipate. ACE worked very hard, as usual - this is our third year with them. They are paid for by grant funds, and are comprised of young (to me at least) college-age persons acquiring practical experience in the field of conservation and restoration. We focused on Pomponio Ranch, a horse ranch located in the downstream area of the San Dieguito River Valley.
Our work during the coming week will depend upon what we find when we perform a survey of the Valley early on. Of note is the tremendous growth spurt in resprouting of cut Arundo that we observed after the heat wave. At the same time, we need to deal with pampas grass, which has received relatively short shrift from us so far this season. Both weeds contribute to fire risk.
I will be in the field from Wednesday through Saturday. Let me know if you would like to help. Email habitatrestoration@cnpssd.org