Another tree lost from the St Vincent's de Paul complex at Lewisham - photo taken by Brigette - thanks
1. It’s with sadness I report another tree has gone from the St Vincent de Paul complex at Lewisham. This time one of the lovely Eucalypts has been removed from the front of The Rectory in Thomas Street. I was told recently that they intend to remove all the Eucalypts in the complex because of dropping branches, which is a crying shame because they all have 2-3 metre plus girths so they will be doing a terrific job at sequestering CO2.
All the Eucalypts are straight growing & as far as I can tell, don’t pose a threat to nearby buildings. Most importantly, they support local wildlife. I witnessed a family of Kookaburras perched in one & was told many birds have made these trees their home.
I don’t understand why a dying branch can’t be pruned. Chopping the whole tree down seems to be overkill. Oh well, less loveliness in the area & more cement.
The locals are extremely unhappy about the removal of this tree & some cried while they watched it being chopped down. I can relate as I could not bear to watch the Stanmore Gum be removed last month as I knew it would be too upsetting.
2. Marrickville Council’s web-site has 2 street trees up for removal. The first in Dixon Street Dulwich Hill is an old Eucalypt. It’s a lovely tree, but it is riddled with borers & if left, will most definitely fall down. I’d guess it to be of the stock that was planted in the early 70s.
This Dixon Street Eucalypt in Dulwich Hill is riddled with borers
The second tree is in Belmore Street Enmore. This tree also has significant & obvious problems. If left, it is likely to drop at least one branch soon. Pruning will not help it as it has deep rot high up in its branches & in parts of its trunk.
Remember this post, because I have agreed 2 trees should be removed.
2 other trees up for removal are in Ivanhoe Street Marrickville. They both have signs on them, but there is no mention of them on Council’s web-site. Why? How many other street trees go this way without notification on Council’s web-site?
3. The Cumberland Courier reported that Ryde City Council has just received a government grant of $97,566 to help protect fauna. This is great news for the significant wildlife corridors between the Lane Cove & Parramatta Rivers. http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/funding-to-help-fix-up-habitat-for-our-wildlife/
4. Another Cumberland Courier news item reported that Liverpool Council is calling for suggestions for sites where they should undertake bush regeneration. This will be funded by their environment levy. Liverpool Mayor Waller said they have “funded some 30 bush regeneration projects…planted 147,757 trees & restored about 12.4km of creek line.” Not bad! This is a significant amount of tree planting & will be of major benefit as the years pass & the trees grow. http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/help-restore-liverpool-sites-to-their-natural-beauty/
5. The Cumberland Courier reported that Hornsby Council has a problem. Local heritage Bunya trees dropped a 7kg nut through a roof of a resident’s house. They will debate whether to pay for the seasonal removal of the Bunya nuts or chop the trees down.
I know which option I would choose. How many Bunya trees are there in Sydney? A day’s work (maximum) removing the nuts & the community gets to keep important & beautiful trees. Has Hornsby Council ever thought of asking the local Aboriginal people if they would like the nuts? I understand they taste wonderful & are prized bush tucker. http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/bunya-debate-to-be-heard-by-full-council/
6. The Herald Scotland reported fantastic news that gained international attention & applause. The Scottish Government’s Scotland Rural Development Program has given a grant of 1 million pounds to create 600 acres of new native woodland & 193 acres of productive conifer woodland. The area is the size of 323 international rugby pitches & will be planted out with 450,000 trees that are expected to sequester around 130,000 tonnes of CO2 over 50 years. Interesting also is that Scotland is aiming to become zero carbon producers. http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/transport-environment/450-000-trees-set-to-be-planted-in-woodland-scheme-1.1006809
7. The UN’s Billion Tree Campaign released its achievements saying that, by the end of 2009, participants in 170 countries had planted 7.4 billion trees (not a typo) This gives me hope for the future. http://www.unep.org/billiontreecampaign/
8. Residents in Pittsfield Township, Ann Arbor USA came out & stopped the power company ITC Holdings Corp from chopping down several 25 year old trees which were within 10 metres of power lines. The residents sought & were granted a restraining order against the company until a court hearing on 24 February 2010. Interesting reading & commendable commitment from residents. http://www.annarbor.com/news/pittsfield-township-homeowners-block-power-companys-attempts-to-cut-trees-today/
9. A letter was published in the Pub Beaufort Island Gazette, Hilton Head Island USA refuting the local airport’s stance that they need to chop down 1,400 trees on airport property & another 983 trees on private property supposedly for safety of planes. However, removing these trees will seriously affect noise control & the area is a Bald Eagle habitat amongst other issues. phttp://www.islandpacket.com/opinion/letters/story/1135750.html
this street tree in Belmore St Enmore is diseased
10. If we lived in Portland Oregon, we would have the opportunity to be involved in their City-Wide Tree Project, which is deciding on regulations for trees to complement their urban forestry plan. Portland is making the news a lot recently because they have officially recognised the benefits of street trees & have recently proven that property values increase significantly when there is a healthy street tree out front. They calculate the benefit of a street tree at US$7,000 citing this is the cost of a new bathroom. Try seeing what you get for that kind of money here! House prices in Portland are also significantly cheaper than in Sydney.
Portland plans to increase their tree canopy by 50,000 street trees & 33,000 garden trees by 2015 (again, not a typo) to improve the lives of citizens & wildlife as well as help combat the effects of global warming. This is quite different form the recent recommendation in a Marrickville Council report to councillors to remove 1,000 street trees a year for the next 5 years. The report did propose to replace them with saplings, but how beneficial this will be is questionable as it says most do not survive. http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2010/02/street_trees_increase_home_val.html
11. To end, Thornlie (Perth) man Richard Pennicuik is still sitting up in the street tree out front of his house after commencing his protest on 5th December 09 to stop Gosling Council from removing the street trees. Judging by comments on internet-based reports about him, views about his protest are polarized. Some think he is a hero. Others are filled with hatred toward him. Strange that people would be so abusive toward someone they don’t know & whose actions have zilch effect on them. Me, I admire him & wish him success.
SAVING OUR TREES - Marrickville municipality 
5 comments
Comments feed for this article
February 26, 2010 at 9:40 am
Glenda Pontes
My neighbours got permission from Marrickville Council to remove an old gum.
It had fungus and was unsafe, and too close to our houses.
Even though I agreed it should go, we were all sad to see it go. All our neighbours commented on the difference it made.
Instantly the Indian Mynas moved in and are now roosting in a neighbours roof, eating our berries, killing native chicks, destroying native nests and leaving their rubbish and poos everywhere.
I am telling this story as it shows what difference just one tree makes.
Yesterday I heard a bird chatter I had never heard before. A huge flock of noisy minas and a few magpies appeared.
They seemed dishoriented and disturbed.
And then I read this today and thought Oh now it all makes sense.
They were disturbed by the destruction and flew away without knowing where to go.
Poor things, they are not around anymore the Indian Mynas have taken care of that.
February 26, 2010 at 11:58 am
Jacqueline
It is sad. The wildlife come second. What is happening there has permission from Marrickville Council and is therefore lawful. But it has a negative impact. At this complex, they also have permission to remove 31 trees along West street where a family of Bandicoots live. Bandicoots are classified as threatened species & this site is only one of three in Sydney, south of the Harbour Bridge where Bandicoots are known to live. How they will cope with their habitat destroyed, who knows. Now another tree, on top of the 31 trees has gone. I know there are many people concerned about the loss of so many mature trees at this complex & it appears they are not done removing trees yet.
Blacktown Council are so overrun with Indian Mynas, they have established an eradication program. Unfortunately, many people think that the birds & other wildlife just move on. Problem is there are many factors which prevent them from doing this successfully such as natural territorial behaviour & limited food resources. Thanks for your great comment.
February 26, 2010 at 10:35 am
belinda
The news from far way places says they are maintaining mature canopy much better than us. I can cope with trees removed for good reason: tree illness or safety to people/houses. But MC needs to be careful to not allow mere convenience to be the leading consideration. Humans have duty to protect the habitat and livelihood of other species, or what’s left of it, seeing we have taken most of it away from them.
February 26, 2010 at 12:04 pm
Jacqueline
Another great comment. Thanks. My dream is for Marrickville Council to follow the trend & plant thousands more trees. There certainly is the space to do so.
March 19, 2010 at 6:57 pm
Nature Lover
As nature lover I have been monitoring your tree problems with interest. It may interest you to know some Councils actually get it right when it comes to trees. Blacktown Council encourages locals to plant native trees. All a resident needs to do is drop into the Council nursery with a copy of their council rates notice to collect two or three native trees for free.
Council has already done the research to ensure the trees are suitable for the area and for the purpose. This includes ensuring tree species do not have root systems that affect footpaths, road surfacing and residential drainage systems. Personally my favourite tree is fraxinus griffithii, it doesn’t grow too tall or wide, has a tap root system and the flowers are modest and don’t clog street drainage when they drop. The symmetry of emerging petite green leaves is astounding and the silver grey trunk is quite attractive.
Perhaps Marrickville Council should contact Blacktown Council for their advice. It may save them a great deal of time, tax payers money and reduce the angst many Marrickville residents seem to be experiencing. Its smart to help the environment, but smarter for Marrickville Council to help residents.