Friday, July 10, 2026

PUSD Responds as Environmental Activist Julia “Butterfly” Hill Joins Fight Over Tree Removals

By ANDRÈ COLEMAN, Managing Editor

The Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) Thursday defended its decision to remove trees during a fire-related soil cleanup, responding to the arrival of renowned environmental activist Julia “Butterfly” Hill by saying the debate must also consider the thousands of students waiting to return to safe campuses this fall.

Hill, best known for spending more than two years living atop an ancient California redwood to prevent it from being logged, has joined local efforts opposing the removal of mature trees at Pasadena Unified campuses amid the district’s cleanup of soil contaminated by the Eaton Fire.

Her involvement comes as the dispute between the district and the city of Pasadena has intensified, with the city issuing stop-work orders and considering litigation over whether PUSD is subject to Pasadena’s Tree Protection Ordinance.

In a statement released Thursday, the district welcomed Hill to Pasadena but urged residents to consider what officials described as the broader public health picture.

“The Pasadena Unified School District welcomes Ms. Julia ‘Butterfly’ Hill, American environmental activist and author, to Pasadena, and respects her decades of environmental advocacy,” the statement said. “We ask only that this conversation include the full picture: more than 8,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil, a legal obligation to remove the health threat it poses, and thousands of families waiting to send their children back to safe, healthy schools.”

District officials said they do not want to remove any trees but maintain the cleanup is necessary after independent testing found toxic contaminants, including lead, in soil across multiple campuses following the Eaton Fire.

“PUSD does not want to remove a single tree,” the district said. “Every decision the District makes starts and ends with one priority: the safety of our students.”

According to the district, removing contaminated soil — and in some locations, trees rooted directly within that soil — is “the only known feasible way” to fully remediate campuses before students return for the 2026-27 school year on Aug. 17.

The district said it maintains more than 5,000 trees across its campuses and noted that the Board of Education recently voted to preserve up to 57 protected trees within the 11 fire-related remediation sites while allowing removal only where environmental consultants and certified arborists determine no safer alternative exists.

Officials said each site is being reviewed individually in an effort to save as many trees as possible.

“PUSD hears our community’s love for these trees, and we share it,” the statement said. “The District’s canopy is part of what makes our school communities so special.”

The district also reiterated its commitment to replace every tree removed.

“For every tree that comes down, we are committed to replanting and restoring the shade and beauty our campuses deserve,” the statement said. “However, we will not compromise on children’s health. When the safety of our students is weighed against the unfortunate loss of a tree, we choose our students every time.”

The district’s soil remediation project calls for removing approximately 8,367 cubic yards of contaminated soil — roughly 13,400 tons — from 11 campuses and district properties.

Officials say the work is being conducted under the oversight of the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) as part of the recovery from the January 2025 Eaton Fire.

Opponents argue mature trees can be preserved while still addressing contaminated soil and have challenged both the necessity of removing approximately 193 trees and the district’s reliance on emergency authority to proceed.

The city has also asserted that PUSD must comply with the city’s Tree Protection Ordinance, while the district maintains the work is governed by state environmental agencies.