Ojai Wildlife League

With warmer weather upon us, people are wondering where we are with our efforts on making the new Lake Casitas fence more wildlife friendly. Here is an update.

Ojai Wildlife League (OWL) members Suza Francina and Sholom Joshua addressed the Casitas Municipal Water District Board of Directors at their February 9 and March 9 meetings.

We reported observations made by residents who regularly walk the lake area. Several people told us that after the new fence was erected they saw no deer or coyotes in places were they previously sighted them on a regular basis.

We stated that the Board has a responsibility to monitor the impact of the fence and report their findings to the public.

We emphasized that the real impact of the fence will not be known until hot weather hits. It is during the driest summer months that there are also the highest number of people using the lake. We need to remember that increased numbers of people makes it even more difficult for animals to find ways to get water.

In February, Sholom Johua spoke with Jack Collins, our contact in the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) South-Central California Area office. Mr. Collins advised us to send a letter by regular mail to Michael Jackson, Area Manager, and Cheryl Carter, Lands Supervisor.

On February 22, 2011, the Ojai Wildlife League sent the Letter below by certified mail to the aforementioned persons.

Due to the nature of the letter, it is our understanding that by law they are required to respond.

On May 13, 2011, we sent a follow-up letter to the aforementioned persons, requesting a response to the Ojai Wildlife League’s letter of February 22, 2011.

A copy of the Letter follows here:

Mr. Michael Jackson, Area Manager, Bureau of Reclamation
Cheryl Carter, Lands Supervisor, Bureau of Reclamation

February 22, 2011
Dear Michael Jackson,
This letter is a request by the Ojai Wildlife League (OWL) for a permit review of the Lake Casitas fence project.
The new fence was erected in November, 2010. It is one-mile long, located next to Santa Ana Road, on the northern side of the lake.
Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) gave approval for the construction in September, 2010, following submission of a Categorical Exclusion Checklist (CEC-10-69).
It is the position of OWL and numerous other concerned citizens living in the Ojai Valley/Ventura County area that BOR was given incomplete and misleading information in the CEC sent to you.
The new six-foot chain-link fence with three tiers of slanting barbed wire on top and no opening at the bottom, replaces the original permeable barbed-wire fence built when Lake Casitas opened in 1960. The new fence connects to fences on either side, making a nearly impermeable barrier against deer and other wildlife, the entire length of Santa Ana Road.
Since May, 2010, OWL members and other local residents have informed Casitas Municipal Water District (CMWD) of concern over the negative impact of the fence on wildlife in the lake area. We have also communicated with BOR about our concerns in the months leading up to the fence’s construction.
OWL has made an extensive study of the fence on the ground, as well as researching all available pertinent records at the offices of CMWD. This includes the communications on the matter between CMWD and BOR.
The Casitas Lake area is pastoral open space with hundreds of deer and other wildlife dependent on the lake water supply. The lake is a sanctuary for wildlife with animals coming down from the hills, crossing the road and, up until November 2010, going through or over the original fence to get to the water.
The essential problem with the new fence is that it prevents wildlife from reaching the lake for a drink of water. Due to its favorable topography, herds of deer are mostly on the side of the lake across from Santa Ana Road. The other three sides of the lake are natural barriers to the lake and not many deer are seen in those areas.
The lands that surround the lake are BOR lands. From the time the lake was formed, BOR has said that one of its priorities was to protect the wildlife in the area. Wildlife needs your protection now.
Prior to the fence going up, deer were regularly seen at the lake. OWL members who visit the lake report that there have been no sightings of deer and other large wildlife since the advent of the fence. OWL receives ongoing reports on wildlife at the lake.
Please note also that instead of spreading out the nightly animal migration to the lake, this new barrier attempts to funnel all of the wildlife into a handful of small inadequate openings. This includes deer, foxes, coyotes, bears, skunks, raccoons, road runners, opossums, squirrels, rabbits, wild boar, feral pigs, feral cats, bobcats and mountain lions, some with their offspring following along.
Santa Ana Road is a busy artery, especially on weekends. Wildlife looking for openings in a fence this close to the road have a much greater chance of being killed or injured and causing vehicle accidents and injury to humans.
In its CEC, The Casitas Municipal Water District states, “In some areas where the existing barbed-wire fencing is still functional across drainages and high points, the barbed-wire fencing would be left in place in order to facilitate animal passage.”
The problem with this plan is that large animals cannot cross at these so called passages. This is apparent to everyone who has actually seen the fence as it traverses the lake’s northern shore. Most of these spots have sharp downward slopes with the fence built at the bottom of those slopes. As for the crossings at high points mentioned in the CEC, these are utterly unusable by wildlife. These high points are actually hillsides cut to accommodate Santa Ana Road. The result is a very steep vertical incline.
Bear and other animals that climb fences cannot climb over the barbed wire on top of the new chain-link fence without severely injuring themselves.
The original fence stood approximately four feet high, allowing for deer and other animals to work their way over or through. It was also a proven deterrent to children wandering off.
The fence itself is a sorry sight. It is more apropos of a correctional institution than a natural recreational area. The idea that this prison-like fence will protect the water quality of the lake is misplaced logic. Since anyone can reach the lake by driving or walking (at no charge) through the main entrance, there is no practical way to prevent someone bent on doing damage from having the opportunity.
OWL is appealing to BOR to intervene and return the lake to its original status as a wildlife friendly resource.
It is cruel to deny animals access to life giving water. Hot dry weather will arrive in a few months and local creeks and other sources of drinking water for animals will dry up. There is additional concern as this Southern California area has a history of wildfires. Access to the lake is critical for wildlife survival.

Sincerely,
Sholom Joshua, Founding member, Ojai Wildlife League
Suza Francina, Founding member, Ojai Wildlife League, Former Mayor, City of Ojai
Sue Williamson, Founding member, Ojai Wildlife League

Here is a link to BOR’s reply to OWL’s letter of February 22, 2011. http://www.box.net/shared/gaz6gfsyqgfjmvcc9bey

Note: We are having trouble posting a link to the BOR Letter which is a PDF file. If above link does not work, please email Sfrancina@aol.com and we will forward you a copy.

New link to BOR Letter: http://www.box.net/shared/8t0rjjpeknrpqqieomsi
(Copy and paste into your browser)
In our opinion, this recent Letter from BOR did not adequately address the concerns stated in OWL’s Letter and provided no new information.

OWL’s response to follow.

Written by Suza Francina on November 1, 2010

To a wild animal there is a world of difference between the current open barbed-wire fence and a six-foot chain link fence topped with barbed wire.

In spite of the protests of the Ojai Wildlife League and other citizens since last May, the California Bureau of Reclamation has approved the Casitas Municipal Water District’s request for a mile long six-foot high chain-link fence topped with three strands of barbed wire.

According to the “Categorical Exclusion Checklist” report, the proposed chain-link fence will replace the existing barbed-wire fencing, that was built when Lake Casitas opened in 1960. It is expected to cost $140,000 and will be erected along the current fence line around the northeast border of the Lake Casitas Recreation Area, along Santa Ana Road.

The new fence is being characterized as no more than a replacement of the original. The “Categorical Exclusion” report states that “In general, the new fence would take up the same footprint as the existing barbed wire fencing…”

It is our opinion that the process used to come to this conclusion is flawed. To a wild animal there is a world of difference between the current open barbed-wire fence and a six-foot chain link fence topped with barbed wire.

The Casitas Lake area is pastoral open space with hundreds of deer and other wildlife dependent on the Lake Casitas water supply, especially during the hot summer months. The lake is a sanctuary for wildlife. Residents who walk this area early in the morning have observed many animals coming down from the hills, crossing the road and going through the existing fence to get to the water.

The Ojai Wildlife League (OWL) is concerned that if animals cannot get through the proposed chain-link fence using existing wildlife corridors, that they will be in serious trouble.

Along with other members of OWL I walked the fence line with a map of the new plan in hand. Unlike the proposed chain-link fence, the current fence is low enough and has openings so that wildlife coming down from the hills across from Santa Ana road can go under, over and even in between the strands of the fence to get to the lake to drink.

The public has been told that eleven sections of the new fence (about 20% of its length) will consist of the original barbed wire. According to the report: “In some areas where the existing barbed-wire fencing is still functional across drainages and high points, the barbed-wire fencing would be left in place in order to facilitate animal passage.”

As I and the other OWL members walked the area, we tried to visualize how animals coming down from the hills would find their way to these openings in order to have access to the lake.

A biologist and longtime resident in the area who has spent many years observing animals cross Santa Ana Road pointed out that deer prefer to jump in areas that are level with the road on both sides of the fence, not across drainages and high points.

Wildlife looking for openings in a fence this close to the road have a much greater chance of being killed or injured and causing vehicle accidents and injury to humans.

Public Safety Concerns
The rationale that the public has been given for this new fence is that there is a need for security for the public water supply. In addition, the threat of the invasive Quagga mussel is still present, and the perimeter of the lake needs to be protected from illegal boat entry.

It is the position of the Ojai Wildlife League (OWL) that there are other ways to address these issues, that allow animals safe passage to drink from the lake. These alternatives include the use of more wildlife friendly permeable fencing, more of the existing wooden posts around the lake that prevent boats from entering illegally, more signs with stiff fines for illegal boat entry, etc.,

All across the country fences create barriers and traps for wildlife, from large animals to birds, causing injuries and often slow, painful deaths.

A guide entitled “How to Build A Fence With Wildlife in Mind,” explains that even when animals do clear fences or crawl underneath or through them they often bear countless scars from wire strands. Saddest of all, some fences are barriers to fawns and calves, even if adults can jump over. Separated from their mothers, the youngsters curl up and die of starvation, stranded and unable to follow the herd.

It is not possible to protect every source of drinking water by surrounding it with a fence. This would include every river and stream if those watercourses eventually ran into lakes and reservoirs. All of the Ventura River, Coyote Creek and the North Fork of Matilija Creek would need to be fenced off. Santa Ana Creek and North Fork Coyote Creek also flow into the lake.

The irony is that even with the proposed new fence trespassers can still enter through the spaces allowed for animal passage. And even barbed wire topped chain-link fences can be rendered useless with a pair of heavy-duty bolt cutters.

If the fence is supposed to be for the security of our drinking water one wonders how a fence is going to stop an airdrop of some massive quantity of poison in the middle of the night, or other clandestine activity?

How is a fence going to stop a terrorist from paying his $10 entry fee, driving a van to some easily accessible piece of shoreline, and discharging some substance into the lake in broad daylight?

It is impossible to make our water supply completely safe, even if we had airport like security at the Casitas gate entrance! There are too many points of entry and they can’t all be protected.

In addition to these concerns, there is the issue of safety. This fence is right along a main artery to the lake and sees lots of traffic, especially during weekends, holidays and special events.

The fence is located between speeding car traffic and the lake, with wildlife caught in the middle. What happens when a herd of deer that is accustomed to jumping the old fence is faced with this new higher chain-link barbed wire topped fence?

Do we fully understand the safety issues both for humans driving by the fence, especially at night, and the consequences of forcing different kinds of animals to share small openings to access water?

Instead of spreading out the nightly animal migration to the lake, this fence would be funneling all of the wildlife into a handful of small openings.

Wildlife corridors are miles wide, not a few feet wide. Some of the openings in the proposed fence are in brush filled barancas that deer do not usually push their way through. Deer usually stay in open areas where they can jump and flee from predators. The other three sides of the lake are not only heavily brushed they are mostly upslope and steep terrain.

There will be many different kinds of wildlife traffic funneled into these small openings: deer, foxes, coyotes, bears, skunks, raccoons, road runners, opossums, squirrels, wild cats, feral cats, feral pigs and mountain lions, some with their offspring following along.

This chain-link fence creates a situation that forces animals into small openings on a road where people often travel over 50 mph, slowing down at the curves or the natural inclines of the road. On a moon-lit night drivers tend to look at the lake and are often not giving the road their full attention. This could translate into accidents on a road that has no lighting at night.

OWL has contacted CMWD Board Members, public officials, wildlife biologists and other experts to express their concerns about the impact of this chain link fence.
If there must be a new fence, OWL is advocating permeable fencing rather than chain link and recommends that the Board reconsider its decision and adopt this more animal friendly type of fencing.

The proposed chain-link barbed wire topped fence is slated for construction in mid November. There is only a very small window of time to voice our objections and ask the CMWD Board and those who have jurisdiction over the Board to reconsider this decision..

The Ojai Valley is known as a community that protects open space and respects wildlife. Lake Casitas is visited every year by wildlife enthusiasts and educators from all over Ventura County and beyond. It should be a model for coexistence between humans and animals.

The consequences of this proposed chain ink fence in this open space watershed will be devastating for years to come.

It is not too late to call the Bureau and Casitas Water board members and express your concerns about the proposed chain-link fence.

Here’s the link for the Casitas Board info.:

http://www.casitaswater.org/lower.php?url=board-of-directors

richhandley@yahoo.com
Richard Handley

reygacho@netzero.net
Russ Baggerly

prefkaiser@earthlink.net
Pete Kaiser

hicki@aol.com
Bill Hicks

anjword@sbcglobal.net
Jim Word

Suza Francina is a former mayor of Ojai and a founding member of the Ojai Wildlife League.