For 15 Years PG&E Has Been
Banking Seeds From Area Parent Trees
EMIGRANT GAP - An estimated
640 acres of Pacific Gas and Electric Company's forestland was burned
in the Gap Fire. Some 500 acres of that total was severely burned
and, today, the company announced that the devastated area would
be reforested with approximately 200,000 descendent seedlings.
As part of its commitment
to environmental leadership, for the past 15 years, Pacific Gas
and Electric Company has been collecting and banking seeds from
parent trees on the company's 140,000 acres of forestland.
"Pacific Gas and Electric
Company is committed to caring and preserving natural resources
throughout our service area for the enjoyment of current and future
generations of Californians," said Robert L. Harris, PG&E's vice
president of Environmental Affairs. "Being a good steward of the
land and an environmental leader means planning for the future,
and ensuring that we have the resources available to protect - and
in cases such as this - restore what fire has destroyed."
Seeds are collected from
conifer species in a given area. In the Gap Fire (Lake Valley) area,
seeds have been collected from Jeffrey Pine, White Fir and Incense
Cedar.
"By using seeds collected
from the area being reforested, the trees have a better chance to
survive and grow in the environment in which they have been genetically
developed by their parent trees," said Allan Newcomb, senior forester
for Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
The cones of the parent
trees are picked just before they ripen. Then the cones are put
into burlap bags and sent to seed banks in Oregon. From there, the
seeds are extracted from the cones, categorized according to seed
zone and size, weighed, cataloged, and put into a freezer for safe
keeping.
Pacific Gas and Electric
Company has banked nearly 4 million seeds - enough to reforest about
10,000 acres.
When needed for planting,
the seeds are sent to a nursery in Loomis, Calif., where they are
germinated and grown for one year. The seeds from the Gap Fire area
will be ready for planting in the spring of 2003.
More information on PG&E Corporations's
environmental commitment can be found in its annual Environmental
Report. To request a copy, please visit the corporation's Website
at www.pgecorp.com.