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Letter: Burnaby does a poor job of replacing and protecting trees

Editor: The City of Burnaby actually doesn't care about trees. At a glance, the city seems to be all about environmental friendliness and sustainability, with new urban paths going up and baby trees being planted to line the roads.
central park trees
Central Park residents were incensed when the City of Burnaby started cutting down trees in November 2018. FILE PHOTO

Editor:

The City of Burnaby actually doesn't care about trees. At a glance, the city seems to be all about environmental friendliness and sustainability, with new urban paths going up and baby trees being planted to line the roads.

However, the new trees they planted by no means offset the carbon emissions absorbed from the huge old growth trees that some of which were cut down from there in the first place.

To make matters worse, the baby trees that have been planted are doomed to rot. You heard me right. Why will they rot? Because the city workers that have planted them have piled the mulch on top too high, creating a perfect place to trap more moisture than the trees need. As you have probably seen, these have been planted all over the city, and these trees await the rotting that is to come.
As a frustrated resident with new houses constantly and noisily being built around me, I have seen a large amount of deforestation in my neighbourhood on private lots with old houses being torn down along with 100-plus-year-old trees. Only to be replaced by a mansion with palm trees that looks like it should belong in Beverly Hills.

Yet, the most frustrating part is that most of these trees that are being torn down were not even on the property of the homeowners.

Rather, they are on the neighbouring lot beside them. The city has a rule that even if the tree itself is not on your property, if 40% of the roots are, you have the right to cut the whole tree down. Oh, and don't even get me started on tree topping.
A word of advice: If you don't like trees, move to a place that doesn't have any.
Sincerely, a frustrated SFU Faculty of Education student.

Holly Butterworth, Burnaby