So….. Just so you Chelsea Folks are aware… and for those of you who already know this please let this be a reminder. I am an arborist and I was doing a job today taking a large tree down that was leaning over the client’s house. A municipal inspector happened by, stopped his car, got out and told me that I had to stop my work. Reason? You need a permit to take down ANY size of tree(s) in Chelsea (be it a sapling to the largest tree in the municipality- be it dead or alive). The fee is $50.00(!) for the permit and the property owner and contractor face fines of up to $2,000.00 if the owner doesn’t have a permit. Yes….$2,000.00! As you will read I am pretty vehemently opposed to this ridiculous policy. I have sent a letter to Ward 3 Councillor Barbara Martin who has forwarded it to Council. My contents of the letter were as follows: I am writing you because I am concerned about the municipal policy regarding the requirement of a permit for a citizen to take down a tree on their property. There had been rumour of the requirement of a permit for some time but the first evidence of it came in one of the more recent municipal newsletters with no detail other that you can’t any tree down on your property without a permit….. I have no idea who came up with this absolutely Orwellian policy and why it is needed……. There is NO information concerning this policy found anywhere on the Municipal web site. The City of Ottawa has a significant tree by-law that can be found here: ottawa.ca/en/residents/laws-licenses-and-permits/laws/urban-tree-conservation-law And the application for which can be found here: ottawa.ca/en/node/267415/index.html ln Ottawa only trees that are 50cms (or larger) in diameter breast height (DBH) need a permit (breast height = 4 feet or 1.5 metres), these need an arborist’s report stating how the request to remove the tree is substantiated. Hazard trees can be taken down without waiting for a permit providing photos are taken in case of questions. THERE IS NO COST FOR THIS PERMIT. It was decided that there would be no cost because approximately 80% of the people who take trees down on their properties are doing so for safety reasons (I am an arborist-in-training and, having been in the tree business for over twenty years and I know this to be factual) and, as such, it was felt that penalizing them for showing due diligence would be seen as counter-intuitive. Tree removal for other purposes (example: renovations) fall under building permits which have an all-encompassing cost. The by-law has been generally well received. The City of Gatineau’s tree by-law that can be found here: gatineau.ca/portail/default.aspx?p=environnement/arbres&mc=s&q=tree The Certificate of Authorization information can be found here: gatineau.ca/portail/default.aspx?p=guichet_municipal/permis_licences/certificat_autorisation_abattage_arbres&mc=s&q=Tree THERE IS NO COST FOR THIS PERMIT. The Gatineau by-law has been met with resistance because the smaller diameter limit (10 cms DBH) is considered by the citizens to be giving them less freedom to manage their properties without government interference. In Gatineau I have also experienced cases of the evaluators mis-identifying tree species and ignoring arborist reports recommending removals. I have two questions: 1) Who is the person in charge of doing the evaluation, what are his/her qualifications, and is he/she certified, in particular, in the area of Tree Risk Assessment? 2) In the event that the evaluator denies a permit and the tree in question then fails and hits someone or something, is the municipality prepared to assume responsibility for the loss due to their denying the removal permit? I strongly urge the Municipality to revisit this policy. I actually recommend that it be abandoned altogether so that our limited municipal financial resources can better spent elsewhere. Unless I am greatly mistaken there is no blatant abuse of tree removal occurring in the municipality; I see it as quite the opposite in fact, I frequently observe examples of trees that should be taken down because they have become dangerous, but the owners may not be aware of the hazards or perhaps they don’t have the financial means to deal with them (and by putting a permit fee on it, the hazard will simply exacerbate itself…..). I do encourage the development and adoption of a tree by-law for new property development that would (where reasonably applicable) limit tree removal to a maximum percentage on a given property, for reasons of erosion prevention, environmental stewardship, etc. (I know there have been a couple of examples where every tree on the property has been cut prior to building… but this far, far from the norm.) Apart from the hazard issue there are many reasons why people might wish to take a tree down on their property (view, air circulation, root intrusion on a foundation to name but a few) and it should be the homeowners’ choice. If it is felt that this policy must be kept in place for whatever reason then it is my strong recommendation that it must be of no cost to the citizens, it must also have a reasonable minimum DBH (requiring one for any size of tree is simply ludicrous), and there be a comprehensive explanation of the policy available on the municipal web site (with all other policies and by-laws for that matter) simply for the sake of transparency and ease of access. Ambushing the citizens with, in my opinion, a ridiculous fee (with no reference) for undertaking something they are more than likely doing to protect their property, is NOT good governance. The only reply that has been received is that the policy is “under review”.. To all you Chelsea Folks out there, if you are “unhappy” with the current Chelsea tree policy I urge you to please voice your displeasure with your Councillor or the municipal staff. I fear that there will soon come a day when we are going to be told what type of car to buy or what color we will be “allowed” to paint our houses and that permit will also cost you $50.00. Please be aware…. Your thoughts? JP
Posted on: Thu, 25 Sep 2014 03:04:46 +0000
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