A tree on the corner of Vicarage and Barrow Road in Smalltown has been scheduled to be cut down tomorrow.
The mature tree, described as ‘dangerous’ by the All-New-Yet-Unimproved Somerset Cuonty Council had suffered years of neglect from the relevant authorities and now it has been deemed easier to chop it down rather than carry out maintenance work.
This is the usual approach from our local authorities – if it’s going to cost money to repair or fix then let’s get rid of it instead. Removal of the tree is also contrary to the new ‘Green’ policy at Somerset. It is unclear who sanctioned the removal or what, if anything, is wrong with the tree which means that removal is preferable to remedial works.
SomersetClive spoke to Smalltown eco-warrior, Scrumpy, who told us “With Climate Change currently the number one item on council agendas it seems strange that Somerset Cuonty Council would advocate full removal of the tree, rather than the removal of some of the upper branches. It’s a very short-sighted approach. They may well decide to plant another tree in the same spot, but it will be many years before a new planting reaches the same size and maturity of this one.
The residents of Smalltown and Dullbridge have lost so many trees and hedgerows in recent years, areas which were once havens to wildlife are now covered in concrete and whilst this may only be one tree it had withstood the onslaught of hurricanes, tornados and very high winds over the years. Unfortunately it is unlikely to withstand the ministrations of the All-New-Yet-Unimproved Somerset Cuonty Council.
This tree is not as dangerous as the Council want you to believe, but I can assure them that it’s about to become more dangerous than they imagine. Situations like this call for direct action. To this end I will be chaining myself to the tree later today and would ask any like minded residents to join me.“
SomersetClive has contacted the ANYUSCC for comment but as no one wanted to claim responsibility for the decision we were unable to get a response.