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COURTESY PHOTOPersonnel of the Santa Barbara City Fire Department and the Park and Recreation Department, along with a wildland firefighting had crew from the California Conservation Corps, removed fire hazards at Stevens Park last week. City works to reduce risk of fire
SANTA BARBARA — The Santa Barbara City Fire Department and Parks and Recreation Department are working together to reduce wildfire risk in parks.
Last week, the departments, with the support of a wildland firefighting hand crew from the California Conservation Corps, removed fire hazards and broke up potential “fire ladders’ in Stevens Park. Work efforts focused on areas of the park closest to residents, property and public trails.
“We reduced ladder fuels that allow a fire that would have remained in the understory to climb and ignite a canopy fire,” Mike Lopez, fire services specialist with the Wildland Division, said in a news release. “We also broke down fallen deadwood that can end up smoldering weeks after a fire and reignite.”
Flags were placed to mark resources to be protected, including woodrat middens and young oak saplings, while invasive plants and trees were targeted for removal. Crews also underwent environmental awareness training at the start of the day to ensure the work did not impact sensitive resources.
“This project has been an ongoing collaboration between Fire and Parks and Recreation. We were able to reduce hazardous fuels in Stevens Park, while also removing invasives to allow the young, protected native species a chance to thrive,” Monique O’Conner, biologist and associate planner for the city’s open space parks, said in a news release. “This is a great step toward active habitat management.”
The two departments will host community walk-throughs of various open space parks in the coming year to highlight the ongoing vegetation management efforts.
— Katherine Zehnder
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