Urban Tree Protection

A debate is raging in WA about Urban Tree Protection.

Lynn MacLaren MLC has supported recent protests in Canning along Manning Road and last weekend at the Save Our Charles Riley Reserve Trees in North Beach. The Greens are calling for state laws to protect mature trees – our urban canopy – which provide foraging habitat for birds, shade, beauty, oxygen and carbon sequestration. We can’t just leave it up to local councils, a Model Tree Policy is necessary.

This is an important issue for all communities.


How to help save the trees along Charles Riley Reserve

by Leisha Jack

Local Governments think it is okay to remove beautiful big existing shade trees, as long as they plant tiny saplings at 3 to 1 to replace them.

But these saplings will take around 30 years to become nice big trees. 

Many seniors enjoy walks in parks and get great health benefits from big trees that add so much coolness and visual appeal to our street scapes and open areas. 
 
But unfortunately many seniors who have been paying rates in there shires for years are finding that their precious trees are being removed.

Imagine how the residents near Charles Riley Reserve, in North Beach feel about the City of Stirling’s plans to remove 47 beautiful mature shade trees, to enlarge the second football field to AFL size for the benefit of  a few senior football players and a handful of mature cricket players (some whom don’t even live in the City of Stirling).

These proposed plans will remove virtually every mature tree in the northern end of this large  reserve.

There are very few trees on this reserve as it is.
 
This issue is causing these residents a lot of distress.

Please ask them what they think of the prospect of looking at a bare paddock of wooden staked saplings for the rest of their days. 

This will also reduce the value of their properties.

Leafy streets and suburbs are more appealing to property buyers and fetch higher prices. 

We want the City of Stirling to;

  • Go back to the drawing board and come up with plans for this reserve that will retain the mature trees and accommodate the wishes and needs of the majority of community stakeholders, not just wishes of some members of the football and cricket clubs.
  • Amend their Public Consultation Procedures.  The next time they conduct  “Public Consultation” on proposed plans, we want it better advertised and we want them to clearly identify in the wording and in their diagrams any trees that would be removed should the project go ahead.  Having public consultation periods in December and final decisions in February are not fair or acceptable as people are distracted or away due to the festive season and holidays. These public consultation demands should apply to all City of Stirling proposed plans involving the removal of public trees going forward.
  • Acknowledge that small staked saplings cannot provide the benefits of large mature trees.  A senior who have been paying rates for years will never see the benefits and will have their lovely shady green park area taken from them.  Today’s young children who play or do sport there will not benefit from these saplings in their youth. 

See the article in The West about this issue.

For details of the plans, see pages 221 to 240  of the council minutes

Take Action to Save urban trees at the Charles Riley Reserve

Stirling residents should:

1.    Approach Bill Stewart and Jason Robbins as local Coastal Ward Councillors by telephone and email
2.    Attend the meeting of Stirling City Council with 3 questions at 7pm on Tuesday 7 Feb
3.    Write letters in the local paper
4.    Sign the petition.

Never attended a Council meeting before? Find out more.

Everyone is encouraged to:

Email The Minister For the Environment, Bill Marmion
Contact The Premier of Western Australia, Collin Barnett

Write to The Editor, WA Newspapers, GPO Box N1027, Perth WA, 6843
Email The Editor
Fax 9482 3830

See the WA Forest Alliance website

Read the group's flyer.

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Action Under the Trees.pdf 229.92 KB