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La Habra Heights representative details habitat fuel clearance plans and mosquito control update
Summary
Kathy Houghton told the council that the Puente Hills Habitat Authority is mapping clearance areas, has RMC-funded vegetation mapping for fuel modeling, and will continue winter fuel clearance; she also reported no local West Nile cases and that a sterile-insect trial is being evaluated.
Kathy Houghton, La Habra Heights’ representative to the Puente Hills Habitat Citizens Technical Advisory Committee, told the City Council that the Habitat Authority has expanded fuel-clearance work and is preparing a preserve-wide vegetation map funded by the Rivers and Mountains Conservancy to help prioritize future projects.
The map will feed a fuel-modeling project intended to better target work near homes adjacent to Habitat Authority open space, Houghton said. She noted that Measure pH has provided a more stable source to cover the Habitat Authority’s core operations, although grants remain necessary to fund additional work.
“We’ve had extra fuel clearance this winter and plan to do more next winter because of the RMC grant,” Houghton said, adding that RMC funds will cover a second round of trimming and cleanup in La Habra Heights. She also urged residents to consider applying to fill an open La Habra Heights seat on SeaTac, the Habitat Authority’s advisory body.
Houghton said the Habitat Authority coordinated clearance-area mapping with the La Habra Heights Fire Department to focus treatments that protect homes adjacent to open space. She confirmed that the Habitat previously received a targeted CAL FIRE grant for other nearby jurisdictions and declined to include La Habra Heights this round because contract and cost estimates for the Heights were not in place at the time of application.
On public‑health matters, Houghton briefed the council on mosquito activity in the region. She said the Greater Los Angeles Vector Control District has reported no West Nile virus human cases within district boundaries in recent months and that two travel‑related dengue cases were reported. She described ongoing collaboration on a sterile‑insect technique pilot with Orange County and MosquitoMate and said the program’s efficacy is under assessment.
“No human West Nile cases have been reported within our district boundaries, and the SIT collaboration is being evaluated for effectiveness,” Houghton said.
The presentation concluded with reminders about habitat educational and volunteer events, including scheduled hikes and trail repairs. The council did not take formal action on the presentation; staff and Houghton said they would supply additional details about available grants on request.
