Endangered plant may have made California wildfires worse

A move to protect a federally endangered plant by halting the state construction of new utility lines is being highlighted in a newspaper report as a potential factor in California’s Palisades fire.

Downed utility lines in the area are being investigated for fuelling, and potentially even causing, the immense Palisades fire, says The New York Times.

However, the California Coastal Commission, who intervened in the utility line construction, have said that they did give out new permits for the utility pole project and “are very supportive of wildfire resiliency work.”

Why It Matters

The cause of the Pacific Palisades fire is under investigation by the Bureau for Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and if government negligence was found to play a part, it would further fuel existing frustration with Mayor Bass, and Governor Newsom expressed by some California residents.

LA is also facing a climate-change-shaped future of increased droughts which will further impact the scope of wildfires, and needs to figure out how to balance everyday conservation with fire protection for the entire region.

What To Know

In 2020, the California Coastal Commission fined the Los Angeles Department of Public Works (LADWP) $1.9 million over their utility pole project in the Pacific Palisades, as the project had bulldozed almost 200 federally protected Braunton’s milkvetch (Astragalus brauntonii) plants.

According to the Sierra Club, there are only 3,000 of these “purple-petalled perennial wildflower” plants left in the mountains, and they are listed under the Endangered Species Act.

The utility pole project policed by the Coastal Commission in 2020 was a public works project designed to install stronger, metal, utility poles in the Palisades, as some of the utility poles in the area were built almost 100 years ago. Downed utility lines have caused blazes in the past, and reporters from The New York Times have now found bits of power line debris in the Palisade hills.

The Coastal Commission told the LADWP in 2020 that they needed to seek a permit from the Coastal Commission to restart the development, as well as undo their roadwork and revegetate the area. While the LADWP paid the fine, it does not appear they ever restarted the utility poles project.

The LADWP has been contacted via phone call and voicemail for comment.

Sarah Christie, a spokesperson for the Coastal Commission, spoke to Newsweek about this incident saying: “In 2019, a hiker reported unpermitted bulldozing through an area of endangered plants and hiking trails in Topanga State Park.

“In addition to damaging native plants and public trails, this type of grading also can also encourage highly flammable, non-native grasses to flourish. But the damage was repaired the following year, and the Commission approved a permit for the Utility to move forward with their work to replace the poles.

“We are very supportive of wildfire resiliency work and will continue to promote efforts to harden homes and public infrastructure and create defensible space.”

What People Are Saying

Eric Edmunds, Chair of the Santa Monica Mountains Task Force in a 2020 letter: “Our task force has been involved with far too many cases of utility companies not using good judgment and failing to comply with the laws, policies, and ordinances that are in place to protect and preserve our finite natural resources.”

The LADWP in 2020: “[This project is] essential in regards to our wildfire mitigation plan.”

What Happens Next

The cause of the Palisades fire is still under investigation by the ATF, who have said it will take time to figure out the root cause of the blaze.

In the meantime, Angelenos are still combating active blazes, with the Eaton fire now at 55 percent containment, and the Palisades fire at 22 percent containment.