Dear Editor:

I and my community have repeatedly called attention to the city- and El Dorado County-owned parcels that surround us in the Montgomery Estates/Cold Creek Trail community because of the inherent risk of wildfire due to build up of dead trees, brush and dry vegetation.

The city has owned the 32 acres along Cold Creek south of Pioneer Trail for years but has treated the area only twice in the last four decades. This stream zone parcel divides two mature communities totaling 600-plus homes plus Sierra House Elementary School.

The county has on rare occasions gotten help from CCC to treat their parcels, partially. The last county effort to mitigate fire risk in our neighborhood was eight years ago.

Recently, our community took on the effort to clear the pine needles and cones away and back from the nearest residence by 100 feet as called for in the county ordinance. This county owned parcel is at the intersection of Cold Creek Trail at Copper Way. We gave the county notice and received no response.

We raked and bagged 21.6 yards of dry fuels and piled more woody materials near the street for pick up. Good neighbors who live adjacent to another county parcel have cleared and stacked three piles of dead willow from around the swale/drain on that parcel.

Our community now requests that the county assist us in our efforts by hauling these combustible materials safely away.

Author’s note: After this letter was published Friday, that same day those 21.6 cubic yards of dry fuels were collected.

Jesse Garner is a South Lake Tahoe resident and Firewise USA Site leader