Water Department
The 2006-2007 Salt Cedar Crew
Saltcedar Update
The highlight of this year’s saltcedar cutting season was witnessing water flowing down a Lower Owens River channel that was once obscured by twenty-foot tall saltcedar. As one of the first steps taken in the restoration of the Lower Owens River, a saltcedar tree fell to the ground back in 1998. Since then many thousands have followed resulting in 62 miles of river channel cleared of this non-native shrub. The removal of invasive vegetation does not end with the cutting, however. Continued vigilance and monitoring are required to head off resprouts and reinvasion of the cleared channel.
In the beginning of the season last fall, we focused on clearing saltcedar from LADWP lands on the delta of Owens Lake. During the remainder of the season we worked in tributaries and areas adjacent to the river channel including Billy Lake, Locust Gate, George Creek, and the Alabama Gates area. More of these non-riparian upland saltcedar populations remain to be cleared in the future. Along with appropriate flow management mimicking natural seasonal cycles, the continuing removal of these regional saltcedar seed sources will enhance the reestablishment of native Owens River vegetation.
Along with thousands of cut saltcedar trees come miles of saltcedar slash. Most of the slash was outside of the rewatered channel but much of it needed to be stacked for burning that is being done in conjunction with LADWP and the California Department of Forestry. We assisted with this task last winter and I can vouch for the fact that it takes a dedicated crew to wade in the Owens River in January.
An ongoing responsibility of the Saltcedar Program is to secure funding to keep the project going. With matching funds still available from LADWP, we are working once again with the California Wildlife Conservation Board to continue funding saltcedar control in the Owens Valley. This work would expand the areas already cleared with WCB funds and further protect these lands from reinfestation with saltcedar from surrounding valley sites.
| Another technique that would
help reduce saltcedar seed sources is biocontrol, or insects that eat or
weaken saltcedar. Ongoing biocontrol work at the Owens Valley site may
eventually lead to finding the right insect for the job of reducing only
the saltcedar while allowing native vegetation to replace it over a
period of time. Successful insect releases in Nevada, Colorado, and Utah
are beginning to demonstrate that biocontrol may be another viable tool
in long-term saltcedar control. With the Lower Owens River now flowing down a saltcedar-free channel, one might think that the Saltcedar Crew might be looking for a new job. But the tenacity and persistence of saltcedar is such that turning your back on a cleared area is not an option. Monitoring and continual follow-up treatments are a reality when dealing with invasive species in managed environments. Hopefully by utilizing management tools such as biocontrol, regular monitoring, and the maintenance of healthy native plant communities, the Saltcedar Crew will some day be able to fulfill its ultimate destiny: to no longer exist.
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The "Blue" Crew: Sawyer, Swamper, and
Sprayer |
