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A letter to the editor from Tim Erickson in Scotts Valley
EDITOR,
To the average motorist using Graham Hill Road, the stretch above Roaring Camp and below Mt. Hermon’s Ponderosa Lodge entrance appears to have been nearly clear cut.
Before eco-consciousness blows this scenario out of proportion, please understand this: No tree is ever cut down as a “senseless” act by the public works system. The trees that are being eradicated along the stretch of said road and numerous other locations in the Pacific West and Northwest have contracted Sudden Oak Death.
Cutting down and removing the dead and dying infected trees produces two significant benefits: One, the threat of wind-borne spores that travel to nearby vegetation is greatly reduced, thus limiting further damages. Two, the sooner these harmful trees are gone, the sooner new and healthy vegetation can receive the sun and oxygen they need to re-vegetate the hillside.
Have you ever seen the damage caused by a 100-foot tree that has rotted through halfway up its trunk? That upper 50 feet can land up to 100 feet from its base.
Hopefully, you would have responded with equal “passion,” had those trees fallen “naturally” on your morning commute. My wife and kids drive that stretch of road twice a day, and I thank the responsible parties for taking action against Sudden Oak Death rather than popular passivity.
Tim Erickson, Scotts Valley
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