Better stewardship of Griffith Park

Re “Burnt park not down for the count,” May 10

Fire in chaparral, the dominant -- and native -- habitat of Griffith Park, is 100% natural.

As with many urban parks, Griffith has been described as our city’s “lungs” -- a big, wild place where coyote and even bobcat sightings are nothing extraordinary. It also has been the canvas onto which generations of Angelenos have imparted their personal vision for the park, from the redwoods in the bird sanctuary to the tropical gardens of the vista points.

The park has always struck a balance between the built and the natural, the wild and the calibrated. Even as its structures are given a face-lift and rebuilt, the park’s natural areas have been victims of neglect, with a complete lack of trail signage, human transients ensconced in the bushes along its perimeter and lush sycamore and oak groves stripped of their undergrowth by off-leash dogs and aggressive maintenance practices.

Although restoring many components of the park are welcome, let’s hope this is done with an eye toward better stewardship of the natural resources we may have been taking for granted.

DANIEL STEVEN COOPER

Pasadena

The writer, a former bird conservation director for Audubon California, is an independent environmental consultant.