A REPORT naming Randwick and Botany as the Sydney suburbs with the least amount of green canopy has opened a spirited debate on restoring the greenery lost in a concrete jungle.
Green Report 1: Poor planning has left Sydney's southeast without enough trees
Sydney Airport has put the brakes a plan to axe 15 native trees that would have removed vital habitat for established wildlife like brush-tailed possums, blue-winged kookaburras, yellow-tailed black cockatoos, white sulphur-crested cockatoos and rainbow lorikeets, according to WIRES carer Janette Thompson.
Mrs Thompson’s Mascot property, in McBurney Ave, backs onto a green strip of scrub, what she calls a ‘green oasis’, that acts as a buffer zone between residents and the traffic noise from Southern Cross Drive.
It is here, among the native trees, that small mammals and birds find refuge from not only human impacts but also predators like cats and foxes.
“As long term residents near Sydney Airport, we acknowledge and respect all airport safety mechanisms, my father was a pilot, and believe that we can all coexist, as we have successfully for approximately for one-hundred years — aircraft, people and wildlife,” Mrs Thompson says.
Mrs Thompson, who spends hours every week cleaning and maintaining the green strip, was one of the Mascot residents calling for a review of the tree removal plan.
In a letter sent to residents, dated November 1, Sydney Airport said it anticipated the removal of 82 trees, 76 close to the eastern end of the runway and six close to the western end of the runway
But a spokesman from Sydney Airport said they had heard the concerns of the Mascot residents and confirmed the plan to remove trees on the land between the rear of properties in McBurney Ave and Dransfield Ave and Southern Cross Drive, that is owned by NSW Roads and Maritime Services, is on hold pending further advise from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority.
She said they were required to remove trees that impeded on the airport’s airspace but used this as an opportunity to “regenerate the environment”.
YOUR SAY
CYC COCO
In an era of so much sustainability knowledge, green planning and architectural greening technology, this is a dismal result.
Idea: Cover every building in plants, a la Central Park. That’d be amazing. Or at least legislate for green rooftops like France has.
PHUC BINACH
Hmmm ... A bit of a no brainier. Maybe they could stop removing trees to begin with?
MARGARET HOGG
This disregard and lack of appreciation of the dependence of humans on tree canopy, generation and green spaces is irresponsible ignorance in this day and age.
GLEN RAMOS
Put trees on the roofs of buildings.
STATHU MESSARIS
What can state and local governments do to fix the issue you ask? Easy! Nuke them all and start again.
TREE REMOVAL IS ‘VANDALISM’
IN RESPONSE to the Greater Sydney Commission report, that delivered a damning review of Randwick and Bayside’s urban tree canopy, Heffron MP Ron Hoenig has come out swinging against ‘environmental vandalism’.
Data produced by the Institute of Sustainable Futures in 2014 shows the former Botany Bay LGA had just 12 per cent urban tree cover, compared to 59 per cent at Pittwater and 36 per cent in Manly.
With the urban tree cover already so low — the area was ranked the lowest in the commission report — Mr Hoenig slammed the removal of ten golden robinias which he says provided a much-needed green canopy for Coward St at Mascot.
“The arbitrary removal of trees in Coward St, without consultation, is outright vandalism,” Mr Hoenig said.
“Tree preservation orders exist to control this type of environmental vandalism.”
A Bayside Council spokeswoman confirmed ten robinias were removed from Coward St, between O’Riordan and Bourke streets, about 12 months ago.
“They were in slow decline and becoming dangerous — dropping branches — and could not be saved,” she said.
“They were removed and replaced with spotted gums which have a good canopy but grow up right and don’t impact on the residential complexes.”
‘ADOPT A VERGE’ PLAN TO GREEN STREETS
Do you want to increase native greenery in your street?
Residents may soon have the opportunity to participate in the “Adopt a Verge” program to improve public land between their homes and local roads.
The program is designed to assist residents to convert turfed or weedy verges into water friendly native environs.
Liberal councillor Harry Stavrinos will tonight appeal to his fellow councillors to consider the program.
“I think we should be encouraging residents to take the initiative to make their verge look more beautiful,” he said.
He said the council would be involved in outlining suitable vegetation for the location and providing mulch for the garden bed.
“It’s a good initiative. I think it’ll create a sense of community and make residents have pride in their street.”
The Inner West Council already has the “Adopt a Verge” program in place.
Locally endemic plant species in the Inner West program are not only drought tolerant but also provide habitat, are low growing and require little in the way of pruning or maintenance.
As part of the agreement, residents who adopt the program would be responsible for pruning and weeding the native verges.
The motion will be considered at Randwick’s monthly council meeting tonight.
FEWER TREES WITH ‘CANCEROUS MESS’
Plans to widen roads, expand intersections and create 24/7 clearways between Alexandria and Moore Park before the WestConnex M5 St Peters Interchange opens, will mean less local parking, fewer trees along the route and some properties will be bulldozed.
A Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) draft plan, dubbed the “Alexandria to Moore Park connectivity upgrade” (A2MP) was labelled part of “a cancerous mess of roads, steamrollering across our city” by Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore.
Plans in pipeline include 24-hour clearways in both directions west of Botany Rd and a new continuous flow intersection at Anzac Pde, Alison Rd and Dacey Ave, Moore Park.
“The flood of cars will continue to pour down Euston Rd, McEvoy and Lachlan streets through to Anzac Pde, devastating the lives of many local residents,” Cr Moore said.
RMS said changes to the 3.2km route are needed because traffic on Euston Rd will go from about 20,000 vehicles per day in 2016, to 40,000 vehicles in 2021.
The extra traffic will be created by the WestConnex M5 St Peters Interchange, the redevelopment of Green Square and the wider growth in Sydney’s population, an RMS report said.
THE 2017 BARISTA SHOWDOWN
An RMS spokeswoman said RMS was finalising the environmental assessment for the proposal, which will provided specific details around the potential impacts: “The number of property acquisitions required for the proposal is still being finalised based on feedback from the concept display and the environmental assessment which is due for public consultation before the end of the year.