The Owens Valley Monitor 2002-2003

2002 saltcedar crew (l-r): Kent Barton, Jeff Kozak,
Saul Ojeda, Rick Puskar, Karl Rauta, Jason Lakey,
Carlos Paz, Gretchen Brownstein, Rayni Chase.
(Photo B. Cashore)

Saltcedar Program Ends Fifth Season -- Brian Cashore, Saltcedar Project Manager

     The Inyo County Saltcedar Control Program has completed its fifth year. Between October 2002 and March 2003, a chainsaw crew of nine worked southward cutting and removing non-native saltcedar (Tamarix ramosissima) from the Owens River channel approximately 17 miles below the Los Angeles aqueduct intake. California Department of Forestry crews cleared the cut material from the channel.
     By the end of the season, the saltcedar crew removed the invasive shrub from 3.5 miles of river channel. This reach of the river contained the largest, densest stands of saltcedar in the Owens Valley. The biggest specimens were 20 feet tall, with trunks 22 inches in diameter. The dense, mature saltcedar monoculture may have been caused by several rock or earthen dams that the crew encountered in the channel. Water that ponded behind these dams could create fertile seedbeds for saltcedar to germinate and grow.
     This past year was also significant because it was the first season the saltcedar program was almost wholly supported by grant funding. The Inyo County Water Department received two grants totaling $740,000 to control saltcedar in the LORP area. The grants came from the Wildlife Conservation Board and the Caltrans Environmental Enhancement and Mitigation Program. These funds will support saltcedar control through April 2004.
     Downstream from the present work site and east of Independence, Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia) has invaded the river channel. Like saltcedar, this plant was imported intentionally as an ornamental tree. Unfortunately, the qualities that made these plants easy to grow allowed them to escape cultivation. Once "escaped," these highly adaptable and hearty species flourish in habitats disturbed or altered by human activities. Though used to some extent by wildlife, saltcedar and Russian olive habitats are far less diverse and ecologically valuable than the native community they replaced. Like saltcedar, Russian olive is a serious invader, with the potential to spread in portions of the LORP area.
     While chainsaws roared, the other saltcedar-eaters, Chinese tamarisk-beetles brought to the Owens Valley several years ago, seemed to be napping peacefully. Apparently, the Owens Valley’s day-length and latitude differ enough from the beetle’s home in northwest China that the beetles can only dream of eating saltcedar here. Work is currently underway to test beetles that are better adapted to Owens Valley conditions. Hopefully, this fine-tuning will result in viable long-term saltcedar control in the valley and the western U.S.
     Thus, another saltcedar field season closed with the satisfaction of working with a great crew and tackling the densest saltcedar in the valley. Many challenges remain ahead:

• Securing funding to support saltcedar removal in the rest of the LORP area and elsewhere in the Owens Valley;
• Addressing other invasive species in the LORP area;
• Working to control saltcedar in the wetted portions of the river channel, which begins east of Independence;
• Adjusting saltcedar control efforts to future LORP activities, such as the introduction of flows to the river channel;
• Developing effective tools and techniques for controlling saltcedar outside of the river channel.

     Given enough water, time, and assistance, the Owens River will heal itself and reestablish its place in the Owens Valley. The Inyo County Saltcedar Control Program is clearing the way for this healing process to begin.

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