CalTrans road project would impact dozens of redwoods

CalTrans' controversial plan to widen a stretch of Highway 101 in Northern California would impact more than the 54 trees the agency will remove, according to an Associated Press story that cited UC Berkeley forestry professor Joe McBride.

CalTrans wants to realign the section of the highway so it can be added to a national system of roads that cater to large trucks. The one-mile section is the only part of Highway 101 from San Francisco to the Oregon border where the large semi-trucks aren't permitted, except by a special exemption, the story said.

A vocal group of North Coast residents have asked a federal judge in San Francisco to stop the project.

McBride studied the site and Caltrans' plans. In a court document filed in support of the project's opponents, McBride said that Caltrans' arborists had not accurately stated the project's potential effects on the old-growth redwoods. McBride's analysis concluded that dozens more trees would die as a result of the work, and that the root systems of seven ancient redwoods would be negatively impacted.

"Substantial irreparable damage would occur to the trees in the project area as a result of the proposed project ... (which) would, in turn, cause negative impacts to the overall health of the forest in the vicinity of the project area," McBride wrote.

The judge's ruling is expected this week.

 

CalTrans wants to remove six redwoods for road project, but UC Berkeley scientist says more will be harmed.

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