Local tree advocates gathered at John Muir High School Friday, July 31, as the Pasadena Unified School District announced more tree removals and soil remediation work at multiple district sites.
About 20 people were out at the school Friday morning a day after PUSD resumed tree removals at the school site the prior day. PUSD confirmed that it removed several non-protected trees, small trees and shrubs from areas where it says contaminated soil need to be removed.
In the space of one hour Thursday evening, July 30, PUSD and the City of Pasadena each issued statements setting down their latest positions in what has turned into a back forth between the two agencies over the last month over the district’s plan to remediate soil found to be contaminated in the wake of the Eaton fire.
PUSD’s statement sent from the district’s communications office and not attributed to an individual said that the Muir removals happened near Building A, south of Building D, east of the track and in the interior courtyard.
Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco said in the statement that the district does not take the removals lightly and reiterated the district’s position that contaminated soil must be removed for the safety of students.
“Where a tree cannot safely remain while that work is completed, student health and access to their campuses must come first,” Blanco said.
Opponents of the plan have described that framing by the district as a false choice being used by PUSD leadership to justify taking down more than 100 trees.
“Private schools in Pasadena and schools in Pacific Palisades did not remove dozens of trees to remediate the soil,” local advocate Jessica Richards said in an email. “The continued false claim of a mandate to remove trees is maddening.”
The district’s statement provided the following updates on work being done at other sites:
-Octavia E. Butler Magnet: Crews began hauling contaminated soil and is expected to continue through Tuesday, Aug. 4.
-Washington Elementary STEM Magnet School: District officials will meet with the Audubon Society and a landscape architect Friday to begin planning restoration of the school’s native garden.
-Franklin Elementary site: Backfilling of excavated areas with clean soil will begin next week.
-San Rafael Elementary School: The district is awaiting clearance based on soil sampling before proceeding to the next phase of remediation.
District officials did not respond for comment Friday about whether more work was slated to be completed at Muir.
Pasadena spokesperson Lisa Derderian on Thursday evening provided a summary of the city’s perspective on the plan including its request that PUSD submit tree removal permits for its work under Pasadena’s zoning code and tree protection ordinance.
PUSD continued with removals and the city issued stop work notices and obtained inspection warrants through the court to be allowed on campus sites to inspect the work.
“The city has completed inspections of all the sites and, to the greatest extent possible, intends to hold the district accountable for any protected trees that were damaged or removed before PUSD adopted its resolution,” Derderian said in the statement.
That resolution, passed by the Board of Education earlier this month, exempted PUSD’s work from the zoning code and tree protection ordinance. In addition, a judge denied PUSD’s request for a restraining order against the city.
“To the extent PUSD has elected to move forward with tree removals, they are relying on state law to do so and have elected to pursue this path over the objections of the city and the community,” Derderian said. “The city of Pasadena will continue to represent the interests of the city in this matter and reserves its rights to make further arguments before the court.”
Local advocates Sabine Hoppner and Nina Raj climbed oak trees on Toolen Place Friday morning that are included on PUSD’s list of trees marked for removal at Muir. The full list of trees included on the district’s list for removal at each site can be found at pusd.us.
Hoppner and Raj have been part of a group of advocates that have not only stood next and or tied to tree trunks, but have climbed into the branches of trees marked for removal sometimes spending all day in the tree.
In its statement, the district said it cannot allow tree climbing or entering a work zone to be part of the ongoing protest against its plan. Advocates reported seeing security guards at school entrances Friday morning in line with a district statement from earlier in the week that, “disruptions have forced the District to adjust sequencing, put additional security measures in place, and ensure contractors can work safely before broader work proceeds.”
The district has claimed that disruptions could delay the fully reopened schools when the new school year starts next month.
Raj said in a text message written while sitting up in a coastal live oak at the Muir campus that sitting with and in the trees is the least advocates can do given what trees provide to the local community.
“The district will continue to try to sever our community’s connection to trees,” Raj said. “The truth is, they can’t. We will remain physically, spiritually, and morally in solidarity with these trees until the district commits to sparing their lives.”