OAKLAND (KRON) — Hundreds of trees are set to be cut down in the East Bay hills as part of a controversial 10 year fire prevention program.
The plan calls for removing eucalyptus trees and other flammable vegetation in an effort to prevent devastating fires like the East Bay Hills Firestorm in 1991 that killed 25 people and damaged some 3,000 homes.
Under the plan, a roughly 20 mile stretch of what park officials call dangerous trees will be removed.
Some neighborhood groups had been protesting the project saying the best plan to prevent fire hazards is not to “clearcut” trees, but to maintain them and eliminate potential ground fuels.
Park officials say the fire mitigation plan targets hazardous growth. Crews will be cutting down specific vegetation including diseased and dying eucalyptus and saplings, according to Carolyn Jones, East Bay Park District spokeswoman.
The program is being funded by a $4.6 million grant approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for the Office of Emergency Services for the city of Oakland, the East Bay Regional Park District and the University of California.