Amah Mutsun: When Fire Was a Tool, By Jondi Gumz

COMMUNITY NEWS Amah Mutsun: When Fire Was a Tool

By Jondi Gumz

The evidence is in the diaries of missionary explorer Juan Crespi, who joined the Portola expedition in California in 1769, drew maps of the area and wrote in detail about what he saw.

He saw indigenous peoples had burned the land frequently, noting this in his diary on Oct. 24, Oct. 30 and Nov. 6, from Palo Alto to Half Moon Bay.

About Half Moon Bay, he wrote: “Rolling hills burnt off with very good soil, good spot for a town, however, there is not a stick of wood anywhere about here.”

That’s one piece of evidence cited by researcher Rob Cuthrell, director of archaeological resource management for the Amah Mutsun Land Trust, to document how native people used fire as a tool to steward the land until the Mission leaders outlawed indigenous burning in 1778.

More evidence comes from macrobotanical analysis of charred plant remains from archaeological deposits showing most seeds found were edible seeds.

Cuttrell was one of the speakers when the Amah Mutsun Land Trust hosted its first fire symposium on Nov. 19, an event on Zoom that attracted more than 600 viewers in the wake of the CZU August Lightning Complex fires that charred 86,000 acres and destroyed 925 homes in Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties. Valentin Lopez, chairman of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, called fire a gift from Creator and “a tool to manage the landscape.” “Our people would burn that landscape (of coastal prairie),” he said. They would burn segments of land in a particular rotation, using lowintensity fires that were easy to watch over and that would not sterilize the ground.

“The prairie had a lot of seed plants — fire was important to help seeds germinate,” Lopez said. “It would take care of birds and animals and people. Our diet was 40 percent seeds at times.”

The second year after the fire, there would be tall shoots for deer and elk to eat. The third year, bushy plants useful for basketry and traps. The fourth year, thicker plants used to make boats and housing.

With the cycle complete, they would start over, once again burning the land to “balance and take care of the resources,” Lopez said.

When burning was outlawed, shrubs started to encroach on the prairie, then other trees, then redwoods, he said.

“There are very little grasslands now on the Central Coast — the biodiversity is gone now,” he said. “Burning regularly rebuilds topsoil. The way we are talking about today will actually achieve that.”

Kent Lightfoot, anthropology professor at UC Berkeley, said a 2007 study of Ano Nuevo presents “strong evidence of sustained cultural burning for many centuries, once every few years.”

“Safe Fires” page 22

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COMMUNITY NEWS Hearing on Hwy 1 Lanes Dec. 8

A45-day public review and comment period on the Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Assessment for the proposed Highway 1 Auxiliary Lane Project from State Park to Bay/Porter is open through Jan. 11, 2021.

The proposed project includes construction of auxiliary lanes, implementing bus-on-shoulder operations, replacing the Capitola Avenue overcrossing to include new bicycle/pedestrian facilities, building a new bicycle and pedestrian overcrossing at Mar Vista Drive, and installing sound walls.

The Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Assessment, released by the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission and Caltrans, identifies the project’s potential impacts and potential avoidance, minimization and mitigation measures.

A virtual public hearing will take place Tuesday, Dec. 8, from 5-6:30 p.m., to provide the public with the opportunity to learn more about the project and submit comments before a final design is selected.

The meeting link at https://sccrtc.org/ Historical Museum, which is closed due to COVID-19, provided this update via email.

“Everyone involved with the Capitola Historical Museum is looking forward to reopening when it is safe to do so,” he wrote. “We have a reopening plan and have made some modifications to the exhibits. Unfortunately, reopening remains on hold due to the slip backward to the purple tier.”

He’s turned to social media to connect with people interested in Capitola history.

“Our YouTube channel now has over 40 videos, including interviews with people who share their memories of Capitola in years past,” he wrote. “We continue to post on Facebook.”

Historical resources are on the museum website at https://www.cityofcapitola.org/capitola-museum: A historic walking tour with printed guides in a box in front of the museum, 410 Capitola Ave.

Also two recent publications are projects/streets-highways/hwy1corridor/ bayporter-statepark/

Written comments may be submitted by mail to Lara Bertaina, Department of Transportation, 50 Higuera St., San Luis Obispo, CA, or by email to lara.bertaina@ dot.ca.gov. Comments must be received by 5 p.m. Jan. 11.

The Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Assessment is at https://sccrtc.org/projects/ streets-highways/hwy1corridor/bay-

When Will Capitola Historical Museum Reopen?

Frank Perry, curator of the Capitola

porter-statepark/. n available for free, “Digging into Capitola History” on how to do historical research about Capitola — helpful for people wanting to research their house — and “A Companion to Capitola,” an alphabetical list of people, places, and events from Capitola history designed as a quick reference guide.

Those walking by the museum will see a small display of historic photographs on the front of the building.

The 2020 exhibition, “Capitola Then and Now,” will be held over through 2021, Perry said. n •••

People with historical questions or interested in donating a photograph or artifact, can call the museum at 831-464-0322 or email capitolamuseum@gmail.com. DRIVE-THRU HOLIDAY LIGHT SHOW