Gosnells tree drops one-tonne limb
15/Dec/2009
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FEARS for public safety have been reignited after a 12m branch fell from a eucalyptus melliadora in a Gosnells street on Sunday.
The tree is the same species of gum that Thornlie man Richard Pennicuik has been seeking to protect for the past week.Mr Pennicuik climbed into the gum tree in Hume Road last Monday, while contractors moved in to cut down 20 other gums along the street as part of a five-year strategy to rid the city of dangerous or damaged trees.
The strategy was finalised after a branch weighing over a tonne fell onto Hume Road in February last year.
The 12m branch is expected to be removed by the council's staff today.
City chief executive Ian Cowie said the latest incident was an example of why the trees were being replaced.
“As the City keeps saying, eucalyptus melliadora are unsuitable for street verges because they are dangerous,” he said.
“We are relieved no serious damage was done when this latest limb drop occurred. It is estimated the latest limb weighed in excess of a tonne.”
Mr Pennicuik has refused to get down from the tree, despite the council offering him a private meeting with the chief executive and a mediator.
He is seeking a guarantee that the tree will be retained.
as posted here
