Controlled Burns to Target Weeds in Wilderness Sites

In an effort to spur the growth of native grasses and coastal sage scrub, state officials will set two controlled burns this week to rid four wilderness sites south of Newport Beach of unwanted nonnative weeds and vegetation.

The state Department of Parks and Recreation and the Nature Conservancy will conduct the burns on Tuesday and Wednesday in Crystal Cove State Park and in the Irvine Co.’s open-space reserve land, which is in an unincorporated area.

The targeted burn areas, totaling 100 acres, are “really degraded and need some help in order to function better as wildlife habitat,” said Trish Smith, the Nature Conservancy’s reserve manager.

The plan is to replenish the area with native plants and seeds over the next two years, Smith said.

The burns, she said, will be next to coastal sage scrub and chaparral habitats recovering from the 1993 Laguna Beach fire.

Artichoke thistle, an aggressive-growth plant with roots up to 8 feet deep, has overtaken grassland areas. Over the last few years, the conservancy and state Department of Parks and Recreation have been trying to control the plant and other foreign vegetation through herbicides, Smith said.

Though some native vegetation will be burned, Smith said that the fires will spur the growth of native plant species as part of a younger, more productive ecosystem.

The burns will target four sites, ranging from five to 45 acres. The burn sites consist of a total of 50 acres of Irvine Co. land and 50 acres of state parkland between Laguna Beach and Newport Beach.

State park and conservancy teams, assisted by the Orange County Fire Authority, will oversee the burns between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. both days.

Smith said that control lines--either bulldozed or mowed--have been constructed around the perimeter of the burn areas and that weather conditions will play a major role.

“We have to have low winds, good air quality and temperatures below 85 degrees,” she said. “If we don’t meet those requirements, we’ll postpone the burns for another day.”