Editor:
The plan to destroy 35 beautiful trees at Gibsons Elementary is not a good one! I find it hard to believe that 35 trees are all suddenly dangerous and potentially ready to fall on people. To say that “The best way to mitigate risks of tree failure is removal of the trees,” (as paraphrased in the Feb. 18 Coast Reporter), well, we better be getting rid of all the trees as that may mitigate a risk of tree failure. Hire at “arm’s length” an arborist and assess each tree and give us the results. What is the rush? Are the trees about to fall over next week? Should they be ill, can they be treated and saved? We must not disregard the necessity of “elder trees” that interact and aid in the health of all trees, the young especially, as they are nursed by the elders. Gibsons has so few trees left. Please have these elder trees assessed again before they are killed and gone forever. Please re-consider this decision and get a second opinion. I might add planting 400 trees is folly and not sustainable and tree failure is guaranteed.
Thank-you.
Suzanne Pemberton, Gibsons resident of 46 years
