TREE REMOVAL AT WEST PENNANT HILLS Hornsby Shire Council has approved an application to remove a 20-metre-tall blackbutt tree at West Pennant Hills Public School for the safety of the children who are students there. The application to remove the tree was submitted by the NSW Department of Education, who investigated every school in the state after a fatal incident earlier this year when a tree fell on a schoolgirl in western Sydney. “It’s an unfortunate situation and we understand many people are very attached to the tree, but the safety of the children must come first,” Hornsby Mayor Steve Russell said. “Experts who have investigated the tree consider it to be dangerous and we would never forgive ourselves if an accident occurred.” Consulting arborists have recommended the removal of the tree due to trunk weakness from past termite activity, a bark inclusion at the base of large twin trunks and faults in upper branches. Hornsby Shire Council did not approve the application until further information was provided, including the results of a resistograph test that showed the amount of sound wood in the tree’s trunk. “This is a tree we would have liked to have kept in our Shire, but based on the evidence and strong urging from the school principal, we have consented to the removal of the tree in the name of safety.” To see the report that concluded the tree was unsafe, click here: bit.ly/1oyTaMH
Posted on: Fri, 06 Jun 2014 05:42:30 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015