Tom Ogren, San Luis Obispo, Calif.

The waterfront in Stockton (Weber Point: a Gathering Place for Stockton Residents LASN, March 2004) is not just, as you say on page two, a passage of the San Joaquin River into downtown; it is the terminus of the deep water channel that flows from Stockton 80 miles west into San Francisco Bay. Ocean-going ships go to Stockton. It was a big naval base during WW II. The waterfront site at the head of the channel is thus key to the entire history of the city, having brought settlers and laborers from the mid-nineteenth century onwards. Reclaiming it, as your article says, was a very big deal.

Alice Crozier, Hoboken, NJ

Dear Editor, Thank you so much for your article announcing the new US EPA GreenScapes Program (GreenScapes Alliance Launched by the EPA, LASN, Jan. 2004), which is designed to help promote green landscaping practices and products. If your readers would like any additional information on the program or would like to join with us to in working to promote cost effective and environmentally beneficial landscaping – you can find us out at our web page: www.epa.gov/greenscapes. Thank you again.

Jean Schwab, U.S. EPA GreenScapes program manager, Washington, D.C.

Dear Editor, I am making reference to your editorial in the November 2003 issue of Landscape Architect where you discussed the responsibility in regard to planting in fire zones (The Getty Center and the Art of Erosion Control, LASN, Nov. 2003). I have a home in Alpine Meadows near Lake Tahoe, and served for 27 years on the local architectural review board. ?????EUR??,,?EUR When the valley was opened for development in 1962 we had trees that were attacked by bark beetles. We removed those trees prior to the adult beetle leaving the trees and for several years had rather good control of the problem; the architectural review board could insist that applicants had to remove infected trees, cut them into firewood lengths, and cover them with heavy poly. Unfortunately the architectural review board did not have control over existing houses so as the community grew and trees became infected by the bark beetle people didn?EUR??,,????'???t remove them so now there are more problems with infected and dying trees.

There are several homeowners?EUR??,,????'??? associations within the Alpine Meadows valley, and where our house is located the association does remove the trees. We therefore have reasonable control within the association?EUR??,,????'???s 85 acres, although it does take a lot of effort to convince the board of directors to invest the money for tree removal and take down infected trees before the adult beetle leaves the tree. Most people do not know enough about the bark beetle and don?EUR??,,????'???t realize that different beetle species attack different conifers species.

This year we have an early spring and the beetle may emerge very shortly – during other years the beetle has not emerged until after the 4th of July. ?????EUR??,,?EUR I have a difficult time convincing the board to remove the beetle trees right now even though the new fiscal year only starts 4 July. Although drought has something to do with it, we have seen perfectly healthy trees attacked during heavy snow years. In Northern California along the coast we have seen Monterey Pines in the landscape being attacked. For several years we have not planted Pinus radiata due to beetle problems. This Pine was used in mass for many years and created wonderful effects. If the governments had acknowledged the problem then the bark beetle could have been stopped in the landscape. The problem does go much deeper than what you covered so well in your article. I believe we have to provide much more education to, not only landscape architects, landscape contractors, and nurserymen; but also to the customers and general public. How this can be done is a real problem.

We like to plant trees for shade, which saves air-conditioning and gives comfort to the house.

We try to enhance the house with trees and shrubs. In Alpine Meadows we plant native plant materials. One native is the Arctostaphylos, and it does well; however it is not recommended because of the oil in the plant that creates big fires. There is a long list of plants that should not be used because of fires, but then we are told to use natives because of water conservation. In Alpine Meadows we did not wish to introduce plants that were not native to the Tahoe area.

In short we have many regulations and recommendations that are in direct conflict with each other. For example, a developer is required to seed grass on newly created slopes. This grass will seed itself and become invasive. In Alpine Meadows it will cover slopes that have Ceanothus prostrata (a very low growing Ceanothus), or a low Phlox, Eriogonum, or Penstemon newberryii; all these plants are two to maybe six inches high and will be covered by the grass that seeds itself. I am trying to convince the County Planning Commission to ask for different erosion control solutions, and have encouraged nurseries to propagate native plants that could then be used in erosion control. It is a tough battle.?????EUR??,,?EUR How can the young landscape architect become aware of these problems, and how can we teach the landscape architectural professors in our schools about what is taking place in field?

Your article was thought provoking, but the problem is much larger, and I have only touched the edge of it. I enjoy reading the magazine. Keep up the good work.