Cutting down our trees because there’s no bylaw
My neighbour (Carmel Drive, North Cowichan) moved here Dec. 1, 1990.
Quote: “There was a wooden cedar fence behind my house when I moved here. Sometime in the 1990s the place behind me was sold and the person who bought it, came around to talk to all the people who lived behind the fence line on Carmel Drive. He told everyone that he was going to erect a chain link fence with cedar trees for a privacy/buffer zone. He asked all the neighbours if it was OK. He took the old wooden cedar fence down, paid for a brand new chain link fence and planted Leyland cyprus cedar trees all along that fence.”
His cedar hedge fence has remained for 25 years. He planted hundreds of cedar trees which all neighbours on Carmel Drive have treasured. Duncan has a bylaw to protect trees, but not North Cowichan.
Presently, this land is 3205 Gibbins Rd. subdivision and it’s phase three of construction. Another neighbour said: “Directly behind my house, a rough wooden foundation is being built for a huge two-storey house.” Also, the homes have been devalued because of the removal of these cedar trees. We would like these Leyland cyprus trees to be replanted.
Behind our two neighbours’ homes, are now big ugly stumps where the beautiful cedar trees were. A total of five to six huge houses (phase three) are being squashed into this property beneath the water tower and behind our neighbour’s property. Is North Cowichan negligent concerning this fence? Let’s blow the horn for trees! Trees give us oxygen, trees increase the value of our homes, they give us privacy, shade and beauty!
Recently [it was reported] in the newspaper [that] $25,000 in the 2018 budget was allotted for carbon neutrality. What does that mean? The answer is, plant a tree. Leyland cyprus grows three to four feet a year; great physical barriers for sun, wind and they screen privacy from two -torey houses. They survive drought, flood and snow. Their feathered leaves trap pollutants, they can even be planted before winter. They adapt to any soil, sandy or clay, they are hardy, resist pests, disease and love full sun. You hardly even have to trim them so they are low maintenance. So, the answer is, plant these cedar trees now!
To reiterate, there are four things needed before the 2018 budget is passed:
1. Replant a brand new Leyland Cyprus cedar fence/buffer zone to protect our residents on Carmel Drive.
2. A new tree bylaw with fines. Duncan has the best tree bylaws with fines.
3. We have 10 signatures of residents in this area protesting the lack of a tree bylaw, which will be given to N. Cowichan.
4. Please phone today N. Cowichan: 250-746-3119 and tell Mark Ruttan or the mayor a new tree bylaw is desperately needed in North Cowichan.
Mrs. Jan Scott
North Cowichan
