Goats Are Back on Brush Clearance Duty in Duarte

DUARTE, CA, August 1, 2011 – Sometimes the best man for the job is a goat. Or a herd of goats, especially when the job is clearing dry brush from steep hillsides.

City of Duarte officials have once again contracted with Ranchito Tivo Boer Goats to clear two areas of the Duarte foothills identified by the City’s field services department in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Fire Department and Department of Agriculture staff. From now until mid-August, the herd of goats will be munching their way through dry brush and vegetation at the top of Greenbank, east of Briar Summit, and on the hillside surrounding the Duarte “D” at the top of Westvale north and west of the Duarte Mesa area. Duarte will pay Ranchito Tivo Boer Goats $12,200, plus all the rubble the goats can eat.

“Our goal is to stop the spread and reduce the overall amount of brush in and around homes adjacent to the open space areas of our community,” said City Manager Darrell George. Complete removal of brush, which could lead to soil erosion, is not a goal of the project, he said. We’ve hired the goats several times before and they do a great job. Prior to enlisting the aid of goats the City relied on mechanical means of clearance to maintain fire breaks.

Ranchito Tivo Boer Goats is part of the Los Angeles County Fire Department approved goat vendor list, and has worked with the cities of Monrovia, Chino Hills, San Diego, and the Chino Basin Water Conservation District.  The utilization of goats is a non-polluting method of brush clearance, considered to achieve better results than mechanical means. Electrified fencing keeps the goats within the designated boundaries. Goats are typically quiet, odor-free, resistant to poison oak, and emit a small, pellet-shaped biodegradable waste material that naturally breaks down into the soil. Goats also make better economic sense than utilizing mechanical means which are more costly.

For more information, call Duarte City Hall at (626) 357-7931.   #