KPBS Midday Edition

Additional 27 Million Trees Have Died In California In The Last Year

By Maureen Cavanaugh / KPBS Midday Edition Co-Host, Marissa Cabrera / News Producer, KPBS Midday Edition

Published December 13, 2017 at 8:26 AM PST

This story was published more than 6 years ago.

Dead trees in the Cleveland National Forest in San Diego County are pictured in this undated photo. They are a casualty of the goldspotted oak borer beetle.

Additional 27 Million Trees Have Died In California In The Last Year

An Additional 27 Million Trees Have Died In California GUEST: Stephanie Gomes, tree mortality response team lead, U.S. Forest Service Pacific Southwest Region

More trees are dying in California’s forests.

A new U.S. Forest Service survey found that another 27 million trees died since November 2016. That brings the total number of dead trees to a record 129 million since 2010.

These maps show the progression of tree mortality across California from 2014-2017.

The lingering effects of California's drought and bark beetles are largely to blame for the dying trees. But there are signs that the rate of the tree die-off is slowing.

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Stephanie Gomes, with the U.S. Forest Service’s tree mortality task force, discusses Wednesday on Midday what the department is doing to address the health of California's forests.

KPBS Midday Edition

Maureen Cavanaugh

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Maureen Cavanaugh has been a familiar voice for KPBS listeners for more than 15 years, serving in a variety of capacities including announcer, host, and producer. As host of KPBS Midday Edition, Maureen has interviewed a wide range of notables, such as comedienne Sandra Bernhardt, actor John Lequizamo, author Chuck Palahniuk, composer Marvin Hamlisch, artist Robert Irwin, and designer Zandra Rhodes. But of all the interviews Maureen has conducted, her most special was with His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. Before joining KPBS in 1997, she worked as a news anchor for KSDO and KOGO News Radio in San Diego. While working for commercial radio stations in San Diego and in Salt Lake City, Utah, Maureen reported on both hard news and lifestyle features. Maureen has received three "Golden Mike" awards from the Radio and TV News Association of Southern California for economic reporting and breaking news. She has also received a "Best of Show" and “Best Radio Newscast” awards from the San Diego Press Club and the "Flo" Award from Public Radio Program Directors Association for Best Public Radio Announcer in a large market. Maureen is a native of Queens, New York, but after more than 20 years in San Diego she feels she qualifies as a real Southern Californian.

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Marissa Cabrera

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Marissa Cabrera worked as a producer for KPBS Midday Edition and had previously served as a Newscast Producer for KPBS' Morning Edition. Before joining KPBS she reported on Vatican affairs, social, and cultural issues in Rome, Italy. She also contributed to a documentary on sex abuse in the Catholic Church. Marissa has worked as a multimedia journalist at various news stations in San Diego and Monterey as well as Columbia, Missouri. Marissa graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism.

See stories by Marissa Cabrera