Local News in Brief : Park Workers Will Replant Fire Areas

Los Angeles park workers will plant rye grass to reduce chances of erosion and mudslides in areas of Porter Ranch and Granada Hills charred by fire, but they will not replant the hillsides of O’Melveny Park, a parks officials said.

The city will sow rye seeds next week on 1 to 2 acres above residential areas burned by a Dec. 9 fire because it does not want to risk mudslides while the land revegetates naturally, said Patrick Kennedy, a senior maintenance supervisor for the Recreation and Parks Department.

The 714 acres of O’Melveny Park, known for its native vegetation, chaparral and grasslands, will be allowed to revegetate naturally, Kennedy said.

He said the city wanted to avoid seeding the park with rye grass, which is most often used for regeneration after fires but is not native to Southern California. Surveys by park and environmental experts concluded that the area would revegetate naturally because a large amount of native seeds and root systems survived the fire, he said.

Authorities believe that there will be little danger of extensive erosion or mudslides during the recovery process, but the city cannot take the risk on land adjoining residential areas, Kennedy said.

The Dec. 9 fire damaged or destroyed 40 homes and burned 3,200 acres.