Local Focus - The Planned Removal of Arundo Donax Threatens the Norco Bluff Trails

08:33 PM PST on Friday, January 1, 2010

Riverside County has added a private agency in its fight against an old invader.

The Board of Supervisors approved a $168,000 annual contract to hire Natures Image Inc. to remove arundo, a cane plant, from the Santa Ana River bottom, according to county documents.

The Lake Forest-based company will replace removal efforts now performed by the Riverside County Regional Park & Open-Space District.

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Special to The Press-Enterprise

Tim Romo, left, a Santa Ana Watershed Association project manager, and Neftali Mendoza, a field assistant, stand near an invasive, non-native plant called arundo donax in Hidden Valley Wildlife Area near Mira Loma.

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The idea is to see how Natures Image works out over the next year, and then renew the contract for four more years at a cost of just more than $96,000 a year, Scott Bangle, general manager of the park and open-space district said Wednesday.

The county will look closely at Natures Image to see if the company can remove the invasive and highly prolific cane plant more cheaply than the district agency, Bangle said.

Natures Image specializes in restoring native habitat and was one of five firms to submit bids to the county. They won the contract after negotiations with the county put the firm as lowest bidder at a cost of $553,166 over five years. The highest bidder's cost was more than $1.4 million over five years.

Natures Image has years of experience in removing arundo, most notably in the Hill Canyons wetlands of Ventura County, according to the company.

That's especially important for the Santa Ana River basin, where thick reed-like arundo has choked off some areas.

By clearing, Bangle said, it should allow more water to flow downstream in the Santa Ana.

Arundo grows to an average height of about 15 feet, though it can occasionally grow up to 30 feet. Native to the Mediterranean region and Asia, arundo was introduced to California in the early 19th century when settlers used it for building material and plumbing.

Though arundo flowers, it primarily spreads through mats of roots. It reproduces quickly and uses a lot of water, which is why it's such a problem in the Santa Ana River bottom, Bangle said.

Regional Park & Open-Space District, one of three special-use districts in San Bernardino County, has been trying to get rid of the plant for years. It hasn't been easy.

The frequent flooding of the Santa Ana River only helps to propagate the plant. The county's preferred method of removal is cutting the cane then using herbicide to kill the root system, said Bob Mulherin, of the Riverside County Agriculture Commissioner's office. It's a tedious and time-consuming task.

The park and open-space district is one of several agencies in the area working on ridding the region of arundo cane. It serves as sort of a mitigation payoff agency.

For example, if a company's activities impact the environment, it could be ordered by a federal government agency such as the Army Corps of Engineers to perform mitigation. The Corps directs the offending company to agencies like the district, which it pays to take out some arundo cane.

Other agencies trying to kill arundo include the city of Riverside, the Riverside County Agriculture Commission's Weed Task Force, San Bernardino County, the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority, and a variety of other local and state agencies.

Bangle said by contracting with Natures Image, the district hopes to remove more arundo in 2010 than was taken out in 2009. Figures on how much arundo cane was removed this year were not immediately available, Bangle said

The Equine community needs to rally at tonight'scity hall in Norco. 7PM Our voices need to be heard. We need to preserve the bluffs trails. This area is state land and we as equestrians stewardship these trails. If we don't speak up the Army Corp of Engineers will not know how special this area is to us all and they will take out the Arundo the cheapest, fastest and most destructive way. The city leaders have an opportunity to work with the Corp and they need to hear us as a community what we want. So Please speak out on our comment page http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Viyp27T5q3I and come tonight and be counted........leave your comments it will matter and help as we are going to bring a copy tonight of all the comments...... Thank you all for caring.......

Too many “natural” places are torn apart to make them “better”.  Nature produces unique beauty that cannot be imitated by man.  The area under discussion is one of such areas.  The raw beauty is awesome to behold and takes us however briefly from the chaos and cacophony of the highways and civilizations and transports us to a quieter, more gentle time.  Suddenly you can hear birds talking and signaling to each other, the branches snapping under the horses hooves and the movement of a breeze through the Arundo.  It is a magical place.  Too few are such venues.  So few, we need to protect them and conserve them.  It would be a safe bet that if the area was used by joggers or bicyclists that have many more numbers than us horse folks the idea would have been tabled immediately.  It is also difficult to believe that such a small area could use so much precious water.  Even if it does, why not control the growth instead of destroying it?  Bulldozing the area is a rape of a beautiful park…yes park.  Not a park where people play volleyball or basketball but more like a national preserve.  It is our duty to keep it as it is.

What is to happen with the fox, coyote, wild pig and others…such as snakes etc.  Will they have to find their way to another home…like our home?  Do we want these critters wandering through our neighborhoods where children and pets play?  Any kind of future development, commercial or not would be in direct conflict with the spirit and philosophy of Norco.  This area seems so small.  Can it not be allowed to exist among all the other manmade black top and manicured lawns.  Leave it alone.  Let it live…so we all can live better.

Larry - Is http://tinyurl.com/2dmxtqm really so much better than http://tinyurl.com/29wrm3j or http://tinyurl.com/2cpmz7s? I beg to differ.

What many in this discussion do not seem to understand is that Arundo cannot co-exist with the native habitat. Sure you see native habitat now, but leave the Arundo in place, and that habitat will quickly disappear. With the native habitat you will also lose the birds and animals you see now. The native wildlife does not use Arundo. Arundo is not habitat, it is not food, it is not shelter for the animals. The animals are only seen there now because they still have some of their natural habitat left. Lose that natural habitat to Arundo, and you will lose the animals too.

Here are a few useful resources those who want to be knowledgeable on the subject may find interesting.

http://ceres.ca.gov/tadn/ecology_impacts/arundo_ww.html

http://www.cal-ipc.org/ip/management/ipcw/pages/detailreport.cfm@usernumber=8&surveynumber=182.php

http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/graminoid/arudon/all.html

http://smslrwma.org/invasives/Arundo/index.html

http://www.rmrs.nau.edu/awa/ripthreatbib/rieger_kreager_giantreed.pdf

http://www.swhydro.arizona.edu/archive/V6_N6/feature4.pdf

http://www.lasgwrc.org/publications/WeedReport.pdf

http://smslrwma.org/invasives/Arundo/biology.html

http://www.ocwd.com/ca-163.aspx

http://www.sawatershed.org/invasive.htm

Question to Rouge Fly:

   Are you an equestrian and have you seen the area in question?

mycash1000 - Yes I am an equestrian, I have two horses of my own. One is a 9 year old gray Arabian gelding, the other is a 12 year old bay Quarter Horse. I am also very familiar with the area in question, as well as very familiar with the native flora and fauna of the area and the various practices of removing invasive plant species. It is for these reasons that I feel so passionate about this subject and so frustrated at the notion that Arundo is a "good" thing. Arundo is not a good thing, it does not need to be protected. I wonder how you all would feel if you saw what the trails COULD look life if the Arundo were gone and the native vegetation were in place the way it should be. Oh one could dream.

We are on the same side. The whole reason for the video is to get people talking and get people educated. My objective is to ally with the removal project so it is done in the favor of preserving the trails. As equestrians, we have been invited to the table to discuss the removal and the restoration. You are well informed and yes you are correct, but we also don't want the method of removal result in the destruction of the area so it can no longer be used for riders. Thank you for all your comments.

A good place to look would be Martha Mclean Anza Narrows Park. Behind the park are acres of natural habitat. Just a couple short years ago a huge project removed most of the Arundo in the area. Last year I believe it was, the rest of the Arundo (in the most heavily infested areas) was removed from the western part of the area. If you look at the original project sites now, just a couple (2-3) years later, you would not know that it had ever had Arundo. The native vegetation has grown back beautifully, and there is now more wildlife than I can ever remember seeing there. The most recently removed areas are still not grown back, however one must also keep in mind in these areas Arundo was almost the only plant growing - a few scattered mature willows and cottonwoods were all that was left. These areas are slowly making their comeback, but it will take longer since the Arundo still has to be intensively monitored and controlled. Some areas of the Norco Bluff trails may well look like that immediately after removal, since the Arundo is so thick. Other areas that only have smaller patches of Arundo will not look so bad. Try taking a ride through the area behind Anza Narrows - there are plenty of trails and you may find yourself very amazed. Keep in mind hand removal was not the sole method used. Some very heavy machinery was brought in to remove the Arundo quickly. After the initial removal, hand methods were used to control the regrowth. If you don't feel comfortable riding your horse out there, take your bike along the bike trail - many of the areas you see from the bike trail were largely covered in Arundo and you will still see how quickly native vegetation can grow once its strongest competitor has been removed. And as I said, there is now more wildlife there than I have seen before. I'm even seeing deer in the park now, and birds galore.

I am an equestrian, I live in the Bluffs, and this issue is of great importance to me.  I am very grateful to those who have contributed video and educated comments.  Please keep it up.  And please post when the next public meeting will be.  I would definitely attend.

I am so happy we have gotten the response on the video and this blog between the two we have had over 1500 hits in 3 days.. I will be attending a study session on Monday, July 26, as an invited guest to find out the facts and hopefully convey the passion and desires of the equestrain. We know the Arundo needs to go, our battle is how it goes. We do not want to be left with the same situtation as parts of Hidden Valley that is still after eradication of 2 to3 years later, is still unusable and the Arundo is growing back. Not only to riders but the wildlife too.  That is what this discussion is about........Thank you all for caring and Thank you to everyone who have left comments.........Keep spreading the word to watch and leave cooments as I will bring them all to the meeting Monday. It will show them we care......

I have lived in Norco since 1986 and seen the Bluff trails change drmatically with the weather. I ride these trails every week and love the peace and serentity I receive there. The ONLY way to eradicate the Arundo is to do so manually without machinery. All you have to do is look at what happened in Hidden Valley Park when they went in with Bulldozers and literally created a huge wasteland. What use to be shady and lovely trails is now open and hot, dusty, trails. I see no natural foliage growing there yet.

So, whatever you say Rouge Fly the matter comes down to this. Get the Arundo out without destroying the environment. Do not destroy a beautiful and shady trail and leave it to dust. The area is beautiful and NEEDS to be preserved. I think we are all in agreement with that. Arundo needs to go, but, not at the expense of the area, the animals, and the enjoyment we as horsemen in this town enjoy. I will do anything to preserve this area and NOT have to ride on the street trails.

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=7576400

I have gone to the meeting and was pleasantly surprised at the williness and spirit of cooperation the Army corp of Engineers are wanting to work with us not against us. They want to work together to restore this area not destroy it.. The Arundo has to go. Unfornatenatly we do not have a choice. Norco does not own this land and we are riding on it as guests. The meeting yesterday with the corp answered alot of questions. It was very productive. They are wanting to restore the area to it's natural state. Leaving it as a recreation area and wildlife habitat. Miriah's Wood is a good example of how it could look. It will take a few years but I think it will be a good thing.  We have the opportunity to partner with them to have the Arundo removed and most of our trails preserved and the promise of new trails.. We are fortunate to now have a voice as a partner. We will loose some trails and there will be an impact on the area for a while, but I think we can work together and hopefully save most of our trails. Let's all understand now that we have the information to proceed and the promise of restoration not destruction.

Todd and Devona, I am so grateful for your efforts in posting this very important matter.  Kudos to you both and thank you for caring.  This is a matter that has several sides and opinions...and all should be heard and taken into consideration.  We are following closely.  Thank you for the forum.

Everyone is asking how the meeting went. As a citizen and someone who truely loves these trails, I was pleasantly pleased at their williness to work with us as a team. Though time will tell, my hopes are that with their promise of restoration we will still have a trail system and still be able to enjoy the area as we do now. We are partnering with them to help keep the trails. Though there will be a rough year ahead as we see them with their tractors and saws tearing up the landscape we love. But they have promised to restore the 250 acres they are working on to a wildlife & recreation area.This means they will plant and help bring it back to its natural state with native riparian plants. It will be up to us to help them know what we want and with the spirit of cooperation we might get back most of our trails. They won't be the same but we will still be able to ride and enjoy the beautiful Bluffs. I personall went to some areas which have already gone though the process of Arundo removal. I was pleased to see alot of regrowth. But also dissappointed as many of the areas are struggling to return to a landscape of plants and re-growth. My hopes and with their promise of replanting, our area might have a better opportunity to return to a forrest like area. But make no mistake, I think it is going to take our help too. We are forming a focus group of a few citizens and city representatives to help guide this project. I think this will be a positive influence on the corp to help them know just what we need to make the bluffs a wonderful place to ride agaion.

http://www.pe.com/localnews/corona/stories/PE_News_Local_D_wtrails06.326c6cc.html