Trees are not the enemy; the real culprits are their locations and maintenance, commercial interests, and Mother Nature’s wrath.
Having experienced the direct-hit forces of Hurricane Juan while I was a Truro resident, and recently witnessing the destructive power of Hurricane Fiona, I can attest to the complexities of dealing with the damaging impacts of severe wind storms. Tree damage is a complex subject with no cure-all solution. It is too simplistic to state that trees must be removed to prevent future such occurrences.
I shamelessly admit that I am a tree lover. During my entire adult life, I have been planting trees. In my third teaching year, my school had one tree at my arrival. When I left that school 13 years later, there were approximately 35 trees of mixed species growing on that property with none planted beneath wires or close to the building. The only tree-related complaint that reached my desk was from our janitor because he hated to rake leaves.
When I reached the point in my career when I could become a homeowner, I started planting trees for my admiration and its location’s enhancement. My former property was in Truro; therefore I was restricted with my planting options due to overhead wires, the size of the property, and regulations established by Truro’s tree committee. But I did manage to leave five trees that still enhance that site.
At another former residence, on a larger piece within rural Colchester County, I added approximately 35 trees, all of which have matured to give it more attractiveness and increase its dollar value.
Since Betty and I relocated to our Guysborough residence, I have been maintaining the trees at this property; removing those diseased or gone wild, and planting additional ones. I do plant trees from commercial establishments but I keep a watchful eye for wild trees that can be relocated, giving them more numerous opportunities to be admired for their unique beauty.
Due to the frequencies and increasing severities of wind storms, we must alter the common mindset that a tree is only a tree and is unaffected by human intervention practices.
During Hurricane Juan and Hurricane Fiona, there were multiple examples of trees of varying sizes who were subjected to the wrath of Mother Nature. Sadly humans enhanced Mother Nature’s potential to be destructive by weakening many trees’ roots with sidewalk construction and roadway excavations.
Clearing cutting has also impacted our forests’ abilities to deal with heavy rains and excessive snowfalls, thus the destructive consequences of such common occurrence providing additional examples of our neglect of environmental stewardship.
Stately trees planted generations ago were ravaged by the hurricanes’ winds, and those that toppled, did damage to the properties located within their falling distances. Some trees simply have matured to the point where they need to be cut back or removed, hence the requirement for planned maintenance of our urban forests.
It is a fact that trees increase a property’s attraction and value. They enable birds and other wildlife to co-habitat with us, and provide shelter from much of the forces of nature. I am not naive to promote that all power lines must be buried to prevent tree-caused outages; however, efforts need to be made to accommodate the reality that trees break and/or topple during severe wind/ice events.
Collaboration between municipal governments, property owners and commercial interests for community enhancements and developments is a move into the realistic acceptance that we live in a continuous changing world. That fact tells us that we cannot ignore Mother Nature; we need to work with her, not against.
Ray Bates
Guysborough (Sedabooktook)