More than 4,500 oak trees have been planted along Lake Cachuma, marking the end of a 20-plus-year restoration program.
The Cachuma Operation and Maintenance Board started the program to replace native oak trees lost to rising water levels.
After the board raised the Bradbury Dam radial gates by 4 feet in 2004 to provide additional water for downstream fisheries, the taller gates let the reservoir hold water at a higher elevation. That flooded some native oak woodlands along the lake, and the Oak Tree Restoration Program was launched to replace the impacted trees.
The initial target was about 4,000 living oak trees. Since the start of the program, 5,740 trees have been planted and 110 existing trees preserved.
With 4,553 trees still living, the restoration project has a 77.83% survival rate. With the goal exceeded, COMB put the project to rest at its July 27 meeting.
COMB Fisheries Division Manager Tim Robinson — who led the restoration program — described the program’s completion as a “momentous occasion.”
Robinson noted that it’s “really rare” for an open range oak tree restoration project to have a success rate of more than 50%.
He attributed the “amazing success story” to rigorous maintenance, including mulching, formative pruning and deer cages to prevent local wildlife from consuming the saplings.
He expressed his gratitude toward everyone who helped along the way.
“This program is really an everybody program, all the way through the board, and particularly the Oak Tree Committee folks that meet once or twice a year,” Robinson said.
Kristen Sneddon, who represents the City of Santa Barbara on COMB, noted the project’s success at the late July meeting.
“These are the most lovingly babied individual trees,” Sneddon said. “Oak trees are remarkably consistent, so they hang in there much harder than we thought.”
Robinson specifically mentioned the help of consultant Ken Knight, who helped craft the logistics in order for the trees to be self-sustaining.
While the first six years of the program were managed by outside consultant Fournier, COMB staff took over management of the project in 2012. By using seasonal fisheries staff for field activities and repurposing salvaged materials, the board was able to maintain the woodlands in a cost-effective manner, Robinson said.
In the past 20 years, the program invested about $2.29 million to ensure that the native oaks would flourish alongside Lake Cachuma.
COMB adopted a resolution to officially complete and close out the Oak Tree Committee and the restoration program. Afterward, the board presented a plaque to the fisheries division to honor its work toward the program.
“It’s really a remarkable success rate, and I think [Robinson is] now the area expert to go to about all these lessons learned,” Sneddon said.
