Roadworks on Melbourne’s notoriously congested Hoddle Street aren’t just proving a nightmare for commuters, but also for some of Melbourne’s mature street trees. Local residents and a tree expert have condemned the felling of 16 mature plane trees, with more to go to make way for the roadworks.

VicRoads Acting Project Director, Catherine Gunn, said, “The decision to remove trees from Hoddle Street was made following detailed investigation and careful consideration and we continue to work hard to minimise our impact on the local environment.”

But, others are not convinced with Paul Collins, a local publisher, saying, “It’s quite saddening to see trees going, to be replaced with a lane that is going to get everybody down to the next traffic jam, two minutes faster.” Many agree, saying in such a concentrated urban area every tree is precious.

Many trees have been lost in Melbourne in recent times, including 400 for water pipe works along St Georges Road, Northcote. The West Gate Tunnel project could see the loss of almost 750 trees and more than 100 will be removed for the Metro Tunnel project.

Dr Greg Moore, the chair of the National Trust of Victoria’s Register of Significant Trees, said, “That section of Hoddle street is pretty wide, has lots of bitumen, but those trees did provide a bit of relief, particularly on a hot day. The problem of all these tree removals is that inch by inch we’re losing more and more of the tree cover that Melburnians have taken for granted. You start nibbling away at your urban tree population, and it’s possible that you lose a whole forest, simply by removing one tree at a time.”

Source: https://www.theage.com.au/victoria/hoddle-street-locals-appalled-as-trees-chopped-down-for-roadworks-20180110-h0gfmu.html