Weeding out the wetlands

Orange County Conservation Corps crew members cleared away non-native vegetation at the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve Monday to restore the Bolsa Chica wetlands to its natural state.

A crew of eight young men worked on weeding out large non-native plants, including several myoporum bushes, Brazilian pepper and tamarisk plants that needed to be cut using hand and chain saws. The group included many young adults who have gotten in trouble with the law.

Conservation crew member Kyle Bartholomew’s skill with a chain saw has gained him artist-like status among the crew. While growing up in Northern California, Bartholomew, now a Huntington Beach resident, learned to wield the saw to cut trees for fire prevention.

Bartholomew has often helped clear non-native vegetation on his own time, said George Patino, a project coordinator with the corps.

“I like having fun with the saw,” Bartholomew said.

Lou Murray, a local environmentalist who is overseeing efforts to remove invasive vegetation along with local groups such as the Bolsa Chica Conservancy and the Amigos de Bolsa Chica, really appreciates the help. She also co-writes the Independent’s “Natural Perspectives” column.

“The public has no access to this part of the wetlands,” Murray said. “Since no one sees it, they saw no point in removing the invasive vegetation.”

The Department of Fish and Game, which manages the wetlands, has never had the funds to do a clean-up before, she added.

The cleanup effort is being undertaken for the first time on a major scale since the 1970s, thanks to thousands of hours donated by volunteers who have helped pull out non-native weeds.

Murray recently received a grant from the Wetlands Recovery Project to fund some of the restoration work. The fund also helps pay the conservation corps for their help.

Working from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., twice a week for the next two weeks, the young men along with other volunteers are clearing about five acres of the wetlands on a half-mile dune strip south of the parking lot at the ecological reserve along Pacific Coast Highway.

Their job is to make it look natural, not landscaped, Patino said. “We do a lot of weed abatement work for other agencies, too.”

But homeless people who have made makeshift homes under the large myoporum bushes pose a unique problem.

“Trespassing on the ecological reserve, much less living there, is illegal,” Murray said. She has noticed at least three transients living on the wetlands, she said.