By Louis Sahagun
March 19, 2010
A walkway project along the banks of a Ballona
Wetlands lagoon may be halted because of a surprisingly robust bloom of an
obscure wildflower believed to be close to extinction, Los Angeles public works
officials said Thursday.
In the midst of recent rains, thousands of Orcutt's
yellow pincushions, a dandelion-like plant with bright yellow blossoms, have
sprouted in the center of the $400,000, four-acre "recreation and wildlife
enhancement" project that includes native-plant landscaping, irrigation
systems, fencing and a walkway made of decomposed granite.
Environmental groups, including the Ballona Institute
and the Center for Biological Diversity, are pleading with the Los Angeles
Department of Public Works to cease construction pending a determination by
state wildlife authorities of the plant's endangerment.
"What we have here are nature-lovers killing nature with a
wildlife-enhancement project," said Robert Jan "Roy" van de Hoek, director of the Ballona
Institute. "Potted native plants nurtured with irrigation systems are not
what we need. Instead, this area should be set aside as a sanctuary for
pincushions."
The California Coastal Commission has asked the city to redesign the walkway to
avoid harming what is believed to be the largest population of the plant in
existence.
City project engineer Richard Liu said construction will continue for as long
as possible. "If we have a court order to do so, we will stop the
project," Liu said. "The project is about half completed."
City biologist William Jones acknowledged some pincushions would be wiped out
by construction. But he also plans to collect seeds from existing plants and
grow them elsewhere.
State botanists do not consider transplantation to be adequate mitigation.
"This thing is so rare that any threat to its existence is cause for
concern," said state Department of Fish and Game botanist Roxanne Bittman. "We currently are collecting data that we
expect will make it eligible for state listing" as an endangered species.
In the meantime, city crews have surrounded three patches of pincushions with
yellow caution tape and placed small plastic flags beside individual plants as
part of an effort to alert pedestrians.
But there were signs that those precautions were not working.
Dropping to his knees to assess the damage at one of the sites, Van de Hoek shook his head in dismay and said, "Here's a
pincushion with a snapped stem, and a few feet away at least three pincushions
were squashed by a single shoe."
A week ago, environmentalists snapped photographs of pincushions sprouting
between two utility poles placed on the ground by Los Angeles Department of
Water and Power crews. The poles were recently removed.
Orcutt's yellow pincushion was discovered and
scientifically described by British naturalist David Douglas in 1831 somewhere
between San Francisco and Santa Barbara.
Today, remnant populations are believed to be clinging to existence in San
Diego and Ventura counties, Rosarito Beach in Baja
California and the Ballona Wetlands lagoon sandwiched
between Playa del Rey, Marina del Rey, Westchester and
Culver City.
"Suddenly having so many pincushions to admire is a source of pride for
me, and it should be for the city," said Marcia Hanscom,
co-director of the Ballona Institute.