Safety or History? : Centuries-Old Oak Is Called a Hazard, May Be Axed

Not fire nor flood nor pestilence could claim this centuries-old oak tree, which had stood, until recently, towering over all else on Trabuco Road in Lake Forest.

Only when the Santa Ana winds whipped through the canyons several weeks ago did the hulking mass of trunk and branches dislodge from its base and begin to topple.

Now, after surviving several hundred years of the elements, the tree may be forced down permanently by man, a move that angers several environmental groups fighting to save it.

They estimate that the tree is at least 700 years old and therefore has historical significance.

Because it is on county property leased to the Lake Forest Equestrian Center, the tree comes under the jurisdiction of the county Environmental Management Agency.

Agency officials say they want to saw it apart because children who climb its branches might be hurt and the county might be held liable. A tree specialist hired by the county said the tree has root rot, and even if it could be righted, its chances for survival are a couple of years at best.

“We have considered alternatives and our conclusion is that the tree should come out,” said Hal Krizan, director of the Department of Harbors, Beaches and Parks, which oversees the Environmental Management Agency.

Marilyn Dove, a member of the Sea and Sage Chapter of the Audubon Society, said her organization and the Sierra Club challenge the notion that the roots are rotting and contend the county is using the excuse to destroy it.

“It involves so much more than a tree,” said Dove, who is leading the fight to save the oak. “There’s history and beauty and a lot of other things that make it worth saving,” she said.

Dove said she and representatives from several other organizations tried to get the support of Supervisor Bruce Nestande. But Tom Eichhorn, a Nestande aide, said the supervisor has decided to let the agency decide the issue.

A decision will be made in the next few days after his department considers all the options, Krizan said.

One plan the county is considering is to keep the tree and build a fence around it, but cost would be a major factor, he said.

Krizan said he wasn’t sure what would happen to the wood if the tree is cut. At $125 a cord, the firewood from the tree would be worth thousands of dollars, said one lumber company spokesman.

Until the final decision, an effort is being made to slow the tree’s demise. A part of the trunk that has been uprooted has been covered with dirt to keep the roots from drying.

The tree became vulnerable after the former property owner backfilled in too much dirt and weakened the root system, Krizan said.

“It’s an attractive nuisance,” he said.