My fellow tree lovers, Oxy students, staff, faculty, and community members,

Oxy's administration and the Board of Trustees have approved plans for new tennis courts, one of which will require the removal of seven Torrey Pines on campus. Torrey Pines are the most endangered pine in the western hemisphere, and while we are not in its native range of the San Diego area, the sheer rarity and significance of this tree should be enough for the administration to want to conserve them. To our south, in San Diego and the city of Del Mar, it is illegal to remove or injure these trees. Oxy is lucky to have these trees; it's a wonder they have survived as long as they have on our campus, and we need to take care of them.

I am posting this as a student concerned about the health of these and other trees on campus. You can support the effort to save the Torrey Pines by adding your signature to this petition, and we can show President Veitch and his administration that we will not stand for the destruction of these beautiful and rare trees. Tell them to find another location for this tennis court or work the Torrey Pines into the new plan without their removal.

Even though I have told President Veitch and members of the Board of Trustees' Buildings & Grounds Committee directly and in person during their meeting about the significance of these trees, they do not want to change the plans. Help them hear that this is not just a personal issue but rather one of a larger picture of institutionalizing sustainability at Oxy. We should not allow the tearing out of trees that block our path for development; they have been here longer than you, me, Jonathon Veitch, and many of the members of the Board of Trustees and they represent a crucial piece of biodiversity at Occidental.