Mt. Sutro Forest Plan Calls for More Diversity of Species

By Ryder W. Miller

After years of deliberation and public input, the Mount Sutro Open Space Reserve Management Plan, which will determine the fate of Mt. Sutro, will shortly be finalized and sent to the chancellor at the University of California at San Francisco for final approval.

The last meeting was held June 12 in the Golden Gate Room at UCSF's Millberry Union. Paul Curfman, project manager for the consulting firm EDAW, Inc., outlined a 10-year proposal, which is preliminary to a longer 30-year plan that will be developed later. Public input from the meeting will be incorporated into a final draft which will be submitted to chancellor.

The $6 million plan entails 10 years of hazardous tree removal, eucalyptus thinning, conversion planting, native plant enhancement and trail system improvements. Subsequently, there will be an evaluation where the next 30 years of management for the mountain will be planned.

The plan will begin in the summer of 2002 if funds are approved.

"The priority is to deal with health and safety issues first - mainly hazardous trees," said Orlando Elizando, community relations representative at UCSF.

When asked if finances were responsible for the delay in a final plan, Elizando said, "Primarily the community wants us to do it that way, which dovetails with our need to proceed incrementally due to funds."

Elizando said the idea to have an evaluation phase was first raised by the community.

Some preliminary work has already begun to remove some dangerous trees. There has been some property damage, with trees falling during the winter storms of 1995 and 1996, but nobody has been injured.

"We have done a fair amount of work so far," said Elizando.

Some other concerns were about the safety of the park's paths.

"To the best of our knowledge they are safe," Elizando said. "With the community we are going to be working on enhancements to make them safer," Elizando said.

Members of the community who came to the meeting to give their input agreed with Bruce Spalding, vice chancellor of University Advancement and Planning, that there was a "general comfort level with the approach" and that they wanted "no trail" signs.

But there are some concerns that the chancellor may reject the plan.

"I would be startled if he doesn't approve it and there is no funding," said Spalding. The chancellor said he will "probably push it off. More likely, if the funds are not available, he would delay."

One of the things at stake was the eucalyptus forest. Some community members were in favor of changing the mountain to reflect the native plants that could be found in the area; others wanted to retain the eucalyptus trees. The majority of people who attended the public meetings, put on by the UCSF Parnassus Community Action Group, decided they wanted to maintain the eucalyptus forest and that native and non-native trees can co-exist.

"There were a lot of people concerned about the loss of the forest," said Carolyn Blair, founder and executive director of the five-year-old SF Tree Council. "We don't care if the canopy is native or non-native. It is a big wind protector. It is stable and they are necessary to help the other trees."

Blair explained how eucalyptus trees helped make early San Francisco hospitable, providing a wind break from blowing winds.

Adolph Sutro planted the first eucalyptus trees at the 900-foot-tall mountain, originally called Mt. Parnassus, in the late 1800s. The eucalyptus forest soon grew to dominate the mountain and by the turn of the century, the whole mountain was forested.

"We like mature and healthy trees," Blair said. "Our input has been that they preserve some of the existing eucalyptus trees."

This decision is viewed as a loss for environmental groups and native plant activists, like historian Greg Gaar, who have complained about diminishing and rare native plants and habitats in the City. Also of concern are non-native plants that "choke" existing trees on the mountain.

Gaar was happy, however, that they were adding to the diversity of plant life on the mountain.

"Preserving the native plant communities is a really good proposal," Gaar said. "I think it is a fairly decent plan that tries to address the diversity of needs on Mt. Sutro. We just need to implement it."

Alan Hopkins, Sunset resident and former president of the Golden Gate Audubon Society, is also happy that they will be adding more plant life to the forest.

"The eucalyptus monoculture is not good for birds or other wildlife. More natives would create a more vital understory. Right now, the species ... don't really provide habitat for animals at all," said Hopkins.

Curfman explained that the four management actions include hazardous tree removal, eucalyptus thinning and conversion planting, the creation of the native understory for wildlife habitat and a management action evaluation to decide what to do for the next 30 years.

The seven planning principles, according to Curfman, include safety, health of the forest, protection and expansion of native plant communities, enhancement of wildlife habitat, improving scenic quality and public access and implementing the Resource Management Plan.

Proposed plant communities to be created and enhanced include Coastal Scrub, Buckeye-Bay-Madrone-Toyon, Oak Woodland and the Redwood Forest.