EG Advocates ~ A Group of Neighbors

OUR MISSION:

To preserve and protect Nature and natural spaces in El Granada in order to lessen the impacts of climate change and severe weather, while allowing for responsible protection of homes against fire and flooding.

CURRENT MISSION CAMPAIGNS:

*Advocating for protecting our wildlife through ecological preservation, while promoting biodiversity through additional native plantings*

*Advocating for eliminating harmful chemicals on the land that flow through the waterways and to the sea*

El Granada Advocates formed in early 2022 by a group of concerned El Granada neighbors who felt the need to speak up on fire danger issues and how they were being handled in the town by local and county agencies. There was and still is a reactive fearful response being discussed to cut down as many trees as possible including the historical median trees within town. 

We agree safety is of the utmost importance and we can create it by cutting fire breaks, hardening our homes, creating defensible space, and creating an escape plan. But, cutting down all the trees around us does not feel like a long term balanced solution, especially for those trees not in the high fire risk zone. It seems counter intuitive to destroy so many trees and habitat during climate crisis when we need as many trees (no matter what kind) as we can keep to capture green house gases and help cool the climate. Taking out hundreds of acres of trees will heat up and dry out the land, increasing the fire risk. It’s a cycle of creating more and more fire risk. Especially, if nothing is replanted. Severe weather and wildfires are a symptom of the original causes of climate change, one of which is deforestation.

We advocated to get the county to Focus on the High Fire Risk areas in the wild land urban interface (WUI), while better maintaining and preserving the historical tree medians. Through a petition (310+ collected signatures), flyers, face-to-face meetings with county personnel, online meetings, videos and grassroots efforts, the word spread and our voices were heard.

While many of our fire danger concerns were addressed, not all of them were. We had requested more funds for maintenance for the median trees that line our neighborhoods, hoping to increase frequency of trimming/clearing debris - this was not provided as far as we know. We continue to press forward with this request and hope one day, increased tree median maintenance will be supplied.

Many of us whom have lived here for many years and have appreciated the historical median trees within town as beautiful magical park space for families, children, and animals.  We are so grateful that the median trees are not considered a threat or priority according to the scientific studies done by the Scoping Project June 2022.  We are also grateful to know Quarry Park is also not a threat.  These are naturalized spaces where wildlife thrives in our town and where megatons of carbon are being sequestered by giant trees.  While most trees are not native, we can minimize how many more Eucalyptus trees are grown here by pulling saplings and collecting seeds regularly.  We can replant natives where trees fall or need to be cut. Existing older trees can also co-exist with natives.  Bringing back coastal prairie can happen in other spaces on the coast as we share the land with all trees and their inhabitants.

Future Goals

With climate crisis upon us, we don't have the luxury of cutting down giant non-native trees to re-organize and re-grow our parks and landscapes to become all native while destroying and pushing out existing animal bird and beneficial insect species to find homes elsewhere.   How do we tear down a forest and expect to continue capturing all that carbon the forest captured? Not only that, cutting down trees creates more carbon emissions. So, by cutting down a forest, we reduce significant carbon capture and create more carbon emissions. We humans, need to learn how to steward the land in healthier ways.

With this website, we hope to educate and inspire fellow neighbors to take action in preserving the unique and beautiful landscape of El Granada as well as all of its wildlife. Climate change is quickly evolving and the landscape and all her inhabitants (including us) face an ongoing threat. Our landscape is also threatened by constant development. It is crucial that all of us work to protect this place we call home.

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