Join our campaign to save two magnificent 70-year-old gum trees on Ruskin Rowe in Avalon from being cut down by Northern Beaches Council!

The community has rallied together, successfully blockading the trees on Thursday and Friday last week, after council contractors came on Weds and cut down two healthy Flooded Gums - and then sold them to the timber-mill.

These robust trees provide habitat for local wildlife and an important part of our urban forest canopy, community heritage and natural beauty. 

 

 

Signing this petition is a small step - but we need your presence!

Join us throughout the week in the cul-de-sac of Ruskin Rowe to support our vigil and protect these magnificent trees. Whether you can stay for a half hour or the entire day, it all counts. Together, we can ensure that the community is heard and these trees are given the chance they deserve. Please come and stand with us!

Our objectives are clear:

First and foremost, we would like to see the trees retained; and for Northern Beaches Council to have a concrete plan for managing these trees (and succession plantings) into the future.

Failing this, we will blockade their removal until the following demands are met by Council:

1. Explain Council’s failure to take feedback from two local expert arborists who have assessed the remaining trees as manageable and, at worst, of moderate risk rating.
2. Explain why no community consultation has occurred as to the future of all four trees.
   
   
3. Preserve the largest tree - in the cul-de-sac - by not fully cutting it down and maintaining its stag as habitat.
   
   
4. Appoint a project ecologist to assess what native species are present in the trees' hollows and branches and how to safely relocate them.
   
   
5. Detail plans for replacement with endemic trees and artificial habitat if removal is absolutely necessary.
   

 

 

MORE INFO:

We must hold Council to account - in attempting to remove these trees, they are in direct conflict with several of their own policies and guidelines:

• Tree Canopy Plan:
  Ratified in September 2023, the plan aims to protect, retain, maintain and improve the tree canopy on public and private land. The decision to remove these significant trees undermines the intents of the Tree Canopy Plan, especially when expert advice suggests they can be managed through pruning and regular inspections.
  
  
• Bushland and Biodiversity Policy:
  Specifically, point no. 6 of this policy, which states:
  "The Precautionary Principle: If there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental damage, lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation. Decisions should be guided by avoiding serious or irreversible damage to the environment and assessment of the risk-weighted consequences of various options."
  Northern Beaches Council's decision to remove the trees without thoroughly considering alternative risk management strategies, such as pruning, regular inspections and installing no-parking areas is a violation of this principle.
  
  
• Removing and Pruning Trees on Public Land Policy:
  'Assessment'
  According to the policy, for habitat trees, council should remove the minimum amount necessary to make the tree safe while still retaining habitat value. This includes leaving hollow stumps for nesting birds. Council’s decision to remove the trees is inconsistent with this guideline.
  'Work We Will Not Consider'
  Council explicitly states that they will not consider removing healthy and stable trees, or trees with good structure and no obvious defects. The trees in question have been assessed by two expert arborists as healthy and manageable with regular maintenance, which contradicts the council’s justification for removal.
  'Tree Removal Criteria'
  The policy allows for the removal of trees only if they are unsuitable, hazardous, or causing unavoidable damage to structures where all alternatives have been considered. The council has not demonstrated that all arboricultural alternatives have been explored, nor has it provided evidence that the trees are causing unavoidable damage! 
  
  
• Pittwater Development Control Plan 2014 - Heritage Conservation Area:
  Ruskin Rowe is listed as a Heritage Conservation Area. The DCP stipulates that trees and vegetation should continue to dominate over the built environment to maintain the wildlife corridor and the special character of the street. Removing these significant trees contradicts the conservation goals outlined in the DCP.
  
  
• Lack of Proper Community Consultation:
  The council's failure to adequately consult with the community and local experts about the removal of these trees goes against their stated commitment to community engagement and transparency. Proper consultation would have provided opportunities for alternative solutions and a more balanced decision-making process.
  
  

If you'd like to find out even more, check out the articles below:

Ruskin Row Blockade Provides Reprieve To Flooded Gums - Pittwater Online News​

Chainsaw Blockade in Avalon - Northern Beaches Advocate​

Community blockades council from felling 70-year-old gum trees​ - Daily Telegraph