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PRESS RELEASE. From Coastside Allies on July 2nd, 2025.
UPDATE: Remove Neglected & Dangerous Eucalyptus Trees from the Unincorporated Coastside.
As the co-founder of Coastside Allies, we are thrilled to provide this update on a portion of our Eucalyptus Tree Campaign. We have been working with Supervisor Ray Mueller and Nicholas Calderon, San Mateo County Parks Director.
THE NEWS: WORK ON THE FIREBREAK WILL CONTINUE.
Ray and Nicholas were able to allocate a budget and, in doing so, took one major step further, creating a safer community for all of us.
Our approach was simple: take every opportunity to discuss our concerns and desired outcomes without anger or making demands. To stay hopeful when hearing about the limitations, but to always ask for alternatives.
Supervisor Mueller is a tireless steward of our coastside community, and for this, we are grateful. He never shut us down or made us feel unwelcome or unheard.
We were 1,100 signatures strong and would like to take this moment to extend our gratitude and thank everyone who helped with this.
We are already planning follow-up meetings, but we will do our best to post a timeline for this effort soon.
I, and the over 100 members of Coastside Allies, hope you all feel great about our ability to take our concerns and turn them into real structural change.
To date, Coastside Allies has raised over 80 THOUSAND DOLLARS in 9 months, 11 special events for non-profits serving youth, elderly, marginally housed, and others.
I am so proud of this community and know we will continue to do GREAT THINGS!
Coastside Allies will continue meeting with leaders from the county (July 30th) to tackle additional items listed on our change.org campaign. We are also very excited to launch our latest in giving efforts, supporting our school teachers by providing supplies and items that they often pay for with their own resources. Please go to our Nextdoor page and join our group. Being a participant in positive community change is all that is required.
~ Coastside Allies, Kevin Sniecisnki – Co-Founder
Change.org: Remove Neglected & Dangerous Eucalyptus Trees from the Unincorporated Coastside
The Issue
Dear Elected Officials, Congressman, Kevin Mullin, Congressman, Sam Liccardo, Supervisor, Ray Mueller, and Director of Parks Department, Nicholas Calderon
This letter is the collective work of our community. Our San Mateo County unincorporated coastside community is urgently calling for action regarding the overgrown, highly flammable Eucalyptus trees that pose a critical fire risk to our neighborhoods. These trees flank our homes, fill county-controlled medians, and dangerously border Quarry Park and Mid-Peninsula Open Space Trust lands, creating an extensive and uncontrolled fire hazard.
The severity of our situation is stark: over the past 12 years, the number of “very high” risk acres has doubled, according to the latest local wildfire severity map. Currently, our firebreaks are inadequate to stop these trees from potentially catching fire and sweeping through our communities. The County of San Mateo owns and maintains these medians yet insists that property owners bear the burden of cutting down trees that pose a risk to homes and neighbors. This approach is both financially burdensome and logically inconsistent.
Eucalyptus trees contain volatile compounds like terpenes that make them extremely combustible. Their natural oils create a perfect storm for destruction, potentially transforming a small spark into a devastating wildfire. The recent devastating wildfires in Southern California serve as a chilling reminder of what’s at stake. Beyond the immediate threat to our lives and homes, we’re already experiencing cascading consequences – our insurance prices are rising, and in numerous instances, neighbors have been dropped altogether by insurance providers, forcing longtime locals out of their cherished community.
We are seeking collaborative solutions and request:
- A community event to discuss fire prevention strategies, past, current, and future efforts
- Clear accountability for tree oversight
- Budget and related timeline for priority areas (most at risk), and possible incremental goals for tree removal
- A timeline for safety measures, such as property fire-proofing
- Opportunities for community participation in policy and practice RE: tree maintenance
The financial burden of removing these dangerous trees should not fall solely on property owners, but clear exceptions and rationale are required. We need a comprehensive approach that protects our entire community. We believe in working together to prevent a potential disaster before it occurs. We are not advocating for the removal of all trees in every area, rather lots that are abandoned or neglected, in the medians where they not only pose a risk to fire but in many instances prevent home-owners from keeping insurance.
As your constituents, we ask you to demonstrate responsive and collaborative governance and take immediate action to mitigate this serious fire risk.
Sincerely, [Community Representatives]
Author: mdrag
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