It isn’t too late… until the chain saws have whined…

Was off line on Friday attending to some personal matters, and then late evening learned of a blogger solidarity day, working to save “Arcadia Woodlands.”

“Arcadia Woodlands” is the informal name used to refer to an approximately 11-acre parcel of public land within the jurisdiction of the County of Los Angeles. I understand it is located within the City of Arcadia. Today it is habitat for some 179 native oak trees (many estimated to be over 100 years old) and other native flora and fauna. Unless the current moratorium is extended, as early as Wednesday, January 12, it will be cleared and it will become a dumping ground for sediment from the Big Santa Anita Dam and other dams.

Here I am, late to the keyboard and this blog post, doing a very small part to raise awareness for this issue. Having no firsthand knowledge, I defer to local colleagues who have been actively engaged. In particular, for more information see several recent posts in Barbara Eisenstein’s blog, linked here.

On Barbara’s blog post of Friday, titled “30-Day Moratorium Ends” (here), she links the sites of others blogging in support.

And, a recent article from The Arcadia Patch:

http://arcadia.patch.com/articles/dam-safety-and-water-storage-concerns-trump-trees-county-report-says

I believe it isn’t a matter of just saving a beautiful place with pretty trees, although far too few places like this remain in our increasingly urban environment. I believe it is linked to sustaining the right balance of natural resources so this planet can continue to sustain life as we know it. Here are a few intriguing bits of information Bob Perry, Professor Emeritus -- Cal Poly Pomona shared in his lecture titled “The Alchemy of Native Plants”:

Life sustaining benefits of (trees):

1) One pound of bio-mass produced stores ½ lb. of carbon

2) One pound of bio-mass produced releases 1 lb. of oxygen

3) One pound of bio-mass produced contains enough energy to sustain one person for one day

Conversely:

1) One gallon of gasoline releases 6 and ½ lbs. of carbon into the atmosphere

2) One gallon of gasoline consumes 13 lbs. of oxygen

3) One gallon of gasoline (only) provides transportation for an average range of 18 to 28 miles

Think about this for a moment… Gasoline may be necessary to sustain one’s lifestyle. Only trees (and other plants) can sustain one’s life. Save a tree, save a life.

If you are in the County of Los Angeles, I urge you to call Supervisor Mike Antonovich requesting to put the “Santa Anita Dam Sediment Project” on the Supplemental Agenda for Tuesday’s Board of Supervisor’s meeting. It may be the last chance to save these trees.