Summit Watershed Protection League

A bit about our history and land conservation efforts:

A beautiful redwood forest surrounds the Villa Del Monte subdivision. It is 113 acres in size. It was clear-cut of most old-growth redwood in the early 1870s. It last burned in a fire that started at Laurel Mill on July 4, 1876.  A half-mile of old South Pacific Coast train bed and telegraph lines traverse the property between the Wrights and Laurel train tunnels. Roughly 200 homes surround this area.

In the intervening 150 years, the clear-cut scar left by generations past has been slowly healing. First brush grew up, then fast-growing trees like tan oak and bay grew tall. Slowly, the redwoods reclaimed their rightful ground.  In recent decades the redwoods have begun to shade out the bays and tan oaks, causing them to grow tall, spindly, and weak. On warm spring days they become heavy with rising sap,  bow over, and with a resounding pop, crash down into the woods. These now exist as huge piles of dry tinder, crisscrossing 10 feet above the forest floor like a giant game of Pick-Up-Sticks. Thickets of small dead trees and brush, now shaded out by the redwoods, exist as ladder fuels that could carry a fire higher and faster. 

Thanks to the efforts of Summit Watershed Protection League (SWPL) and the support of adjacent neighborhoods, the redwood tree canopy has been saved from four attempts to log since 1983. As a result, the area now provides prime conditions for a shaded fuel break.  

We have maintained SWPL, our neighborhood 501(c)3 non-profit charity, to always be in a ready state should a logging threat reoccur. With the help of John Leopold the property was rezoned so logging there is no longer an easy option. The property was recently purchased by a neighbor who is interested in being a good steward of the land.   "The ultimate goal would be to return this area to look more like it did 1000 years ago." said the land owner on a recent hike of the property with CDF and neighbors.

As a result, SWPL has changed its current focus from local logging impact, to reducing local forest-fire risk. 

SWPL thinks we should each preserve our own beautiful little piece of the planet the best we can for future generations.

Current Issues:

California has seen a drastic change in wildfires in recent years.  All of the most damaging fires recorded have taken place in the last 15 years.  Wildfire behavior is changing radically as we have witnessed over the past several years. 

Given these recent events, and our charter to protect the Summit Watershed, SWPL is taking an active interest in fire safety, prevention and education.