Millard Canyon blast on, now off

This story is still developing: residents of the Chaney Trail neighborhood near Millard Canyon were notified Monday that U.S. Forest Service crews were planning to dynamite a large boulder at the top of Millard Falls today.  

According to an email sent out by canyon resident Lori Paul, today's blast was cancelled, but the reasons behind the blast are still uncertain.

The story began with an email from Mike Alarid, superintendent of the Bear Divide Hotshots, to Michael McIntyre, the local district ranger, requesting him to notify all residents of the area that blasting would take place this week.

Paul noted that there could be severe effects to any blast:

 

There are bank swallows (Riparia riparia), listed as Threatened by the State of CA and as a CSC by the CA Dept of Fish & Game (CA Species of Special Concern), as well as black swifts (Cypseloides niger), listed by the CA Dept of Fish & Game as CSC, that have mud nests below that boulder, as well as ferns and California tree frogs who will all be killed or injured by any blasting. 

Removing that picturesque boulder would forever alter the appearance of that historic and beautiful waterfall. I believe that the big boulder at the top of the falls is stable and has been in photographs of Millard Falls dating back to the 1930s. Millard Falls is a favorite destination for many visitors to Millard Canyon, though the 2009 Station Fire has temporarily closed the trail to the falls. It is also just around the corner from Millard Canyon cabin residents.

Blasting is always tricky in the hills: in 1998, a repair crew laying pipe for Rubio Canyon Land & Water Co. used dynamite, which ended up filling that canyon with boulders and buried several waterfalls.