Outcry Over Alleged Old-Growth Redwoods Cut in Redway Reaches Supervisors

The residential property in Lower Redway where redwood trees were being removed in January, with freshly cut wood and disturbed ground visible. [Photo by Lisa Music]

This winter, a homeowner cut down several old growth redwood trees on his property on the corner of Briceland Road and Oakridge Drive in lower Redway.

Supervisors heard objections to it during a public comment period this January and heard more at their March 3 meeting.

Residents of Redway and Southern Humboldt emphasized the importance of protecting the last of the county’s old growth redwoods and said county regulations prohibit such cutting.

Southern Humboldt Supervisor Bushnell would later refer to an exemption process that “came from this board from a lawsuit that we got into with PG&E two years ago.”

The recent tree removals were approved by CAL FIRE, which allows exceptions to old growth preservation requirements in cases where structures are endangered.

But Redway residents questioned that and why the cutting was allowed to happen.

“What assurances will the county give that that will convince us that this won’t happen in the future?” asked Redway resident Sue Maloney. “In all my years of trying to protect trees such as these if there’s one thing I’ve learned it’s that the farther away from this area you get, people cannot believe that trees such as these can still be logged and that they’re not all protected – people cannot believe it’s still legal to cut them.”

Ettersburg residents John Hardin and Amy Gustin described the cutting as an affront to community values, with Hardin saying allowing sale of the redwood represents “cynical opportunism” and Gustin saying the cutting is “a real middle finger to the community.”

Lower Redway resident Adona White referred to an emailed letter she’d submitted “on behalf of a group of concerned community members” and asked the county to “conduct a postmortem evaluation to learn from the recent removals and see what went wrong.”

Some speakers said removing old growth redwoods will have a tourism-related economic impact, with one saying the tree cut site was once attractive and “now there’s a big pile of mud there and a bunch of stumps.”

Several residents said county rules should have prevented what was done and criticized the county’s Planning Director, John Ford, and the Planning Department.

But Bushnell said “currently the process is on hold and is under review with the planning department” and that Ford “had nothing to do with this.”

She said she’s discussed the matter with both Ford and CAL FIRE, and there’s been a meeting between the agency and the county.

“We are working through the process to make this more transparent and to do what we can,” Bushnell continued.

Some speakers noted that the homeowner who did the cutting is a CAL FIRE employee and suggested bias is afoot.

Some sharp criticism of Ford and his department drew a response from Supervisor Rex Bohn.

“You lose any respect from me when you come up here and attack our staff,” he said, adding that Ford had nothing to do with the cut and it “never reached his desk.”

Before saying the matter should be taken up at a future meeting, Supervisor Steve Madrone poetically spoke for the trees in the style of Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax.

“We need to speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues,” he said. “So we are speaking to you, board, at the top of our lungs. Unless someone like us cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better – it’s not.”

He added, “So I would very much recommend that we agendize this item so we can have a full discussion about the Q Zone, what happened here, and what we’re going to be doing going forward.”

Earlier:

• Weighing the Choices: Balancing Safety and Redwood Preservation in Lower Redway
• Calls for Old-Growth Redwood Protections Follow Tree Removal in Lower Redway