Norah Head: Poisoned Norfolk Pines spark safety, erosion fears

Cabbage Tree Harbour residents are scared a stand of poisoned Norfolk Pines will collapse on their homes or into the sea causing further erosion on a cliff line already prone to landslips.

Three years after they were poisoned a stand of about 10 Norfolk Pines are at risk of collapsing onto homes or into Cabbage Tree Harbour.

The trees were poisoned in September 2018 with residents discovering large drill holes at the base of a number of trees at the northern end of the stand.

Within weeks the rest of the trees also started dying off along.

At the time a number of trees and shrubs at nearby Mazin Reserve were also targeted with drill holes hidden with leaves and grass stuffed into them.

Three years on and the Norfolk Pines are starting to drop branches and the tops of a number of the trees have collapsed.

One local resident told the Express Advocate she called her insurance company this week “to make sure I’m covered if it falls on my house”.

She said the tree trunks had been hollowed out by birds and posed a major safety risk.

“I called an arborist because I wanted to save the tree in my yard,” the resident, who declined to give her name, said.

“He said Seasol and lots of water, I think I spent $1000 on water.”

The stand of Norfolk Pines at Cabbage Tree Harbour a couple of weeks after the first few trees on the northern side were poisoned. Picture: Marc Smith

Despite an extensive investigation by Central Coast Council and the doubling of a reward to $20,000 for any information leading to a conviction no one was ever found responsible for poisoning the trees, which most locals believe was done to improve views.

“I’m not cutting my tree down, whoever poisoned them can look at them,” she said.

Another resident said the trees could fall at any moment.

“The worry to me is the cliff,” she said.

“It’s unstable and if they go there will be nothing to stop further erosion. It could be a disaster.”

The cliff above Cabbage Tree Bay has been subject to several landslips during severe weather events ever since the June 2007 “Pasha Bulker” storm when several backyards were affected.

About $2 million was spent on drainage works and placing a rock toe wall along the base of the cliff but there continues to be landslips with council erecting safety warning signs and orange fencing to keep people away.

A small healthy Norfolk Pine near the base of the cliff, which was not poisoned, is already teetering on the edge of collapsing from erosion and residents fear one big east coast low pressure system could see them all come crashing down.

“It’s such a shame, they were so beautiful,” one woman said.