At least 15 trees fell in Watertown during Hurricane Sandy, raising questions among residents and officials about the towns tree removal policy.

A Siberian Elm on Jewett Street toppled two Verizon utility poles when it fell onto a house on Monday afternoon, and another Siberian Elm on Templeton Parkway caused a small fire when it fell on a house on Monday. Trees also fell on Longfellow Street and on Bailey Road, among other locations.

Templeton Parkway residents and Jewett Street residents had previously asked the town to remove those two trees, and now, in the wake of the storm, some residents are frustrated that the town didnt act before the storm.

I said the tree should come down, said Daniel Rosati, a Jewett Street resident who was home on Monday afternoon when the tree fell and destroyed the corner board of his house.

Tree Warden Chris Hayward said he was upset that the falling trees had destroyed property and caused distress for Watertown residents, but he stressed that both predicting the weather and removing trees are imprecise sciences, and its difficult to know when the town should listen to a residents request to remove a tree. He said the tree on Jewett Street was a perfectly healthy tree that was felled by extreme winds.

If I took down every single tree that every resident wanted me to take down because theyre afraid of it, we wouldnt have any trees in town, said Hayward, adding that residents often request that trees come down for other reasons, such as blocking satellite dishes or dropping branches onto residents lawns. Unfortunately, Ive got to try to find a happy medium here, to hold onto some of the bigger trees that weve got, and get rid of some of the trees that arent doing so well.

Hayward also said that Hurricane Sandy was such an unusual phenomenon that it would have been impossible to predict its effect on Watertown.

[Residents] have to understand that we had a hurricane. It wasnt just your typical hurricane. The weather forecasters are saying that this was a crazy weather phenomenon, said Hayward. This wasnt your typical everyday thunderstorm.

Hayward said the town can take one of two roads when faced with the question of whether to remove a tree. If a tree is sick with a malady such as decayed fungus or a rotting trunk, the town can simply remove it. But if residents request the removal of a tree thats not sick, the town must hold a public hearing under the Massachusetts Public Shade Tree Act. If anyone from the community appears at the meeting speaking in favor of preserving the tree, or sends an email in advance of the meeting asking that the town preserve the tree, Hayward must bring the matter to Town Manager Michael Driscoll, who must then decide, in conjunction with Hayward, whether the tree should be removed.

Town Councilor Angeline Kounelis, who represents the East End, including Templeton Parkway, said that residents of that neighborhood had asked the town to remove the Templeton Parkway tree. She and Hayward both said town officials would hold a neighborhood meeting with Templeton Parkway residents to discuss the tree incident.

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Falling trees in Watertown raise safety questions

Posted on: 9:26 pm, October 31, 2012, by Bonita Cornute, updated on: 07:53pm, October 31, 2012

ROCK HILL, MO. (KTVI) A homeowner from Rock Hill struggles to address code violations. Updating the plumbing and dead tree removal prove to be a real challenge. Contact 2 usually zeros in on contractors whove dropped the ball. Today, we`ll introduce you to three people with the heart to help.

The trees in the front and back yard of Donnie Savages home almost consumed his house. The single parent was cited and told he needed to clear the overgrowth and remove a huge dying oak tree. He explains why. One of the trees that I had was actually overlaying into a neighbor`s yard at the top. And they asked me to trim the tree for the sake of safety and also the ordinances. Donnie has been off work since a fall caused head injuries. That was in July. This month he burned his hand and foot in a kitchen fire. And he cant work, so repairs have been put on hold. Amazingly things are changing. Patrick Thompson of Pats Tree Service agreed to help. He explains why. On certain circumstances we are able to perform certain types of tree work. Obviously we can`t do tree work for free for everybody. But something had to be done. A tree from Donnie`s yard fell onto his neighbor`s car.

Inside the house precision plumbers replaced the old cast iron stack in his basement. Owner Jesse Ray says that was critical. The pipe on the toilet was leaking sewage, into the basement so you can get really sick from that. And that`s the reason it needed to be addressed. Fry Remodeling hung new doors and made improvements to windows poorly installed by another contractor. Calvin Fry says he can spot shoddy work pretty quickly. When I looked at them I said they got the window too small and they tried to build them out. And so we obviously can`t take them out and replace them so we`re going to trim them out and make them look as good as possible.

Donnie Savage says he`s optimistic hell be back on his feet soon. The generosity of strangers will help make that happen.

If you have consumer issues call us at Contact 2. The toll free number is 800-782-2222. Volunteers take calls Monday through Thursday between 11am and 1pm.

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Contact 2: Tree Removal

Plans by Atmos Pipeline-Texas to remove a large number of trees in Flower Mound drew the ire of Texas Senator Jane Nelson (R-Flower Mound) this week.

And just wait until more tree conservationists in Flower Mound hear the plan.

Monday, representatives from Atmos Pipeline-Texas explained to the Flower Mound Town Council why they are proposing to clear a large number of trees throughout the town to enhance safety and to better survey part of its high-pressure transmission pipeline system.

The pipeline itself runs 6,000 miles, spanning from the Red River to Houston and from West Texas to Carthage in East Texas. It provides natural gas to Atmos Energy Corporation Mid-Tex Division customers and CoServ customers.

Flower Mound's portion of the pipeline equates to about 12 miles. The path starts near the Lakeside Business District in the southern end of town, and travels north through The Sanctuary, the Wellington subdivision and Tour 18 Golf Course. The Sanctuary is the first conservation neighborhood the town created and contains many old trees.

The original plan called for clear cutting to begin Nov. 1, and after breaking for the holidays, tree removal would continue after the first of the year.

For a link to the map, click here.

After hearing concerns from the council, Charles Yarborough, vice president of rates and regulatory affairs for Atmos Pipeline-Texas, said Atmos would postpone its plans until discussions between his company and the town staff could take place to try and find a middle ground.

But before that agreement, tensions were high over the idea of so many trees being destroyed.

Yarborough said the tree removal is necessary to allow utility officials access to the pipeline, which is 24 inches in diameter and operates with a pressure up to 602 psi. He said the tree removal would make it easier to patrol and conduct gas leak surveys.

See more here:

Town, Atmos at odds over tree removal (updated)

Plans by Atmos Pipeline-Texas to remove a large number of trees in Flower Mound drew the ire of Texas Senator Jane Nelson (R-Flower Mound) this week.

And just wait until more tree conservationists in Flower Mound hear the plan.

Monday, representatives from Atmos Pipeline-Texas explained to the Flower Mound Town Council why they are proposing to clear a large number of trees throughout the town to enhance safety and to better survey part of its high-pressure transmission pipeline system.

The pipeline itself runs 6,000 miles, spanning from the Red River to Houston and from West Texas to Carthage in East Texas. It provides natural gas to Atmos Energy Corporation Mid-Tex Division customers and CoServ customers.

Flower Mound's portion of the pipeline equates to about 12 miles. The path starts near the Lakeside Business District in the southern end of town, and travels north through The Sanctuary, the Wellington subdivision and Tour 18 Golf Course. The Sanctuary is the first conservation neighborhood the town created and contains many old trees.

The original plan called for clear cutting to begin Nov. 1, and after breaking for the holidays, tree removal would continue after the first of the year.

After hearing concerns from the council, Charles Yarborough, vice president of rates and regulatory affairs for Atmos Pipeline-Texas, said Atmos would postpone its plans until discussions between his company and the town staff could take place to try and find a middle ground.

But before that agreement, tensions were high over the idea of so many trees being destroyed.

Yarborough said the tree removal is necessary to allow utility officials access to the pipeline, which is 24 inches in diameter and operates with a pressure up to 602 psi. He said the tree removal would make it easier to patrol and conduct gas leak surveys.

"We need to get to that pipeline in case it needs maintenance quickly," Yarborough said. "Taking time to cut down the trees could hinder a response to an emergency situation by days as opposed to hours."

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Town, Atmos at odds over tree removal

RESIDENTS of a Mooroolbark street are furious 18 mature trees were chopped down to make way for a new housing development.

Gordon Court resident Kerry Swift said residents wrote to Yarra Ranges Council about two months ago when two houses, at 26-27, were sold.

In the letter seen by the Leader, residents said they were concerned about the future of a resident population of tawny frogmouths and asked that the quiet, family-friendly amenity of the area be considered.

But on Monday, October 8, Mr Swift said he was devastated when the tree loppers arrived early in the morning and by Tuesday all 18 trees were down.

Should a permit be needed for mass tree removal like this? Tell us what you think below.

"We were so upset seeing the trees come down and birds - including the tawny frogmouths - flying around everywhere," Mr Swift said.

"It's such a mess now - an environmental nightmare.

"Those trees were 60 maybe 100 years old and were there for everyone.

"Why did they have to cut down all of them?"

Mr Swift said he felt annoyed that there was nothing that could be done about his street but wanted to warn other residents.

Link:

Should permits be required for mass tree removal?

Emerald ash borer might make its way soon to Independences tree population if it isnt already here and city officials should be prepared for the green beetles potential impact on tree removal, and ultimately, the citys budget.

In Missouri emerald ash borer was first discovered in 2008, but this year, it also was located in Clay and Platte counties, meaning the green beetle that kills all ash trees will likely hit Jackson County and Independence soon, said Independence Tree Commission chairman and certified arborist Gordon Shaw on Monday night.

We expect the emerald ash borer will be in Jackson County and in the city of Independence relatively soon, Shaw told the City Council. It could be here already.

Native to Asia, emerald ash borer was first discovered in the U.S. in Detroit a decade ago and has since spread to 16 states, Shaw said. While it is not a threat to human health, the beetle destroys all ash trees vascular systems, and if it is located in firewood transported from one place to another, it can spread hundreds of miles.

Because of emerald ash borer potentially moving in Independence, the Tree Commission developed a list of recommendations for the city. The beetle could potentially infect hundreds, if not thousands, of area trees, which would need removal. Now, Independence Parks and Recreation removes roughly 40 trees each year.

First, Shaw said, the city should perform an urban tree inventory to determine the ash tree population in Independence, a figure now unknown. The inventory includes location, number and condition of ash trees.

We know that the emerald ash borer really affects trees that are declining it affects those first, Shaw said.

Next, the city should apply for a Missouri Department of Conservation TRIM grant, a matching funds program (up to $25,000) used for urban tree inventory. This would give city officials a better understanding of what the emerald ash borer would financially cost Independence, Shaw said.

We just want the City Council to be aware that when budget talks come up that there may be some additional costs coming for tree removal and tree replacement, Shaw said.

Mayor Don Reimal asked how removed trees are disposed to prevent transmission of the beetle to other disease-free trees. Joe Knoll, the citys interim parks and grounds manager, said if the removed tree are chipped smaller than 1 inch, the beetles should be destroyed.

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City urged to prepare for battle against green beetle