Photo taken July 24, 2025, courtesy of Sierra Club.
Redding environmentalist to celebrate 100th birthday
Bea Currie will be celebrating her 100th birthday on August 16! I visited her recently and found heras sharp as ever, and loving the birds and native plants that abound in her garden. Bea was a teacher in Shasta County for many decades, and served as president of Shasta Birding Society (formerly, Wintu Audubon Society) for a number of years. She is also a member of Shasta Chapter CNPS. Festivities will begin at 2 PM on Saturday, August 16, at the Sheraton Redding Hotel at the Sundial Bridge. Call 530/246-2500 to RSVP!
Tree ordinance update
On July 24, Shasta Scout ran a detailed article on Redding’s tree ordinance, Four years later, still no updates to Redding’s tree ordinance, by Heather Taylor. Many who are concerned about Redding’s tree canopy commented. City Council members do follow the news on Shasta Scout and are cognizant of the comments that are written, so it is important that readers leave comments on any article about environmental issues. Shasta Scout is starting to run more articles on environmental issues, which we appreciate. Remember to donate in support of all of our local news outlets: KFOI, KKRN, KIXE, KCHO, JPR, Anewscafe, and Shasta Scout. All need your support.
Photo taken July 24, 2025, courtesy of Sierra Club.
Sierra Club volunteers at Lassen Volcanic National Park
This past July, I was invited to speak about environmental issues in our area to about 15 Sierra Club volunteers at Lassen Volcanic National Park. These volunteers hailed from across the nation and were spending five days at Lassen removing the invasive bull thistle (Cirsium vulgare) and woolly mullein (Verbascum thapsus), amongst other tasks.
In my evening talk, I concentrated on the extensive clear-cutting of the Battle Creek watershed, which starts at the Park and flows down through the Shingletown area and into the Sacramento River. The next morning, on their day off, I led a few of the group on the Lily Pond Trail where I helped them learn 10 different conifers (see, Conifers of the Lily Pond Trail). You have to admire their dedication to the environment: they volunteer to work almost a week for free, pay their own travel, and donate over $400 to remove invasive plants in our National Park. According to Park personnel, the Sierra Club does volunteer work like this in the Park every year. ~David Ledger, Conservation Chair