Now that the BAER team has made it's initial assessment of the Sunflower
FIre, remediation projects are getting started. Because of the denuding of the
upper reaches of the Sycamore Creek watershed, it is anticipated that a heavy
monsoonal storm could create a flash flood that would damage or destroy
historic structures at the Sycamore Admin Site. Among the structures are the
admin house:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/7386654208/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/7386657794/in/photostream
and the barn:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/7386660664/in/photostream
that were built by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corp) during the Great
Depression in 1936. There are also modern structures at the facility that are
in danger.
The goal is to fill 25,000 sandbags to build levees around these
structures. We had a four-station sandbag filling hopper on loan from the
Arizona Department of Emergency Preparedness:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/7386663378/in/photostream
and a dozen positions for three-person crews using shovels:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/7386666282/in/photostream
We bagan around 0730 and ended the day around 1400 (2 PM) with an hour
break for a generous lunch that was provided by USFS. There were dozens of
USFS personnel and almost 100 volunteers. In that period of time we filled
over 8,000 bags. This project will continue through the week and will be
completed well before the first monsoonal storms arrive.
The channel of Sycamore Creek is being cleared of debris that could result
in log jams that would pool water downstream or result in sudden releases of
water upstream. Concrete barriers will later be placed along the existing
streamside levee.
Historically the site has been flooded as high as the top of the block
foundation of the barn, but BAER anticipates that due to the denuding of the
watershed the levels could be higher and faster, so these measures are
necessary in order to protect historic structures as well as an essential USFS
working facility.
After we were done, there was ample time to explore some of the local
flora, amongst which I found a flowering patch of Narrowleaf Yerba Santa
(Eriodictyon angustifolium), the leaves of which are a very effective
anticatarrhal for relieving excess sinus drainage:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/7386668730/in/photostream
Chris
--
_________________________________________________________________
Options: http://lists.thomasclausen.net/mailman/listinfo/olympus
Archives: http://lists.thomasclausen.net/mailman/private/olympus/
Themed Olympus Photo Exhibition: http://www.tope.nl/
|