Update: the pedestrian upgrade and potential tree removal in Lane Cove Village

There’s been a lot of community concern about potential tree removals on Burns Bay Road near Chemist Warehouse. I have met with Lane Cove Council staff to share my concerns and wanted to share what I’ve been told about the situation.

There are 5 trees involved and their removal forms part of a pedestrian area upgrade of the South and North side of Burns Bay Road near the pedestrian crossing.

When I heard about the tree removals, I was alarmed. Any talk about established tree removal is always a cause for concern for me. 

This is why I emailed the General Manager about it. I also requested a meeting last week with Lane Cove Council staff to find out more details. I wanted to see if tree removal could be halted or if the pedestrian upgrade could be implemented without the tree removal.

I invited all other interested councillors to the meeting. Councillors Merri Southwood and David Roenfeldt came with me. 

This is a summary of my notes from that meeting reordered for clarity. I thought it might help our community understand the situation.

What is planned for Burns Bay Road

The pedestrian upgrade will make the cross-fall near Harris Farm compliant with current regulations and also include new landscaping with plants native and endemic to the Lane Cove area.

It will include:

• replacing paving and removing tripping hazards

• regrading some pavement to avoid flooding

• installing ground-level garden beds to absorb rainwater runoff

• adding pram ramps to the disabled access area

• replacing any removed trees and planting additional trees

• widening existing tree pits to increase the permeable area around the trees.

Construction will take place on one side of the street at a time to minimise access issues. There may be some night work.

Staff are in communication with local businesses and the ramp to and from the carpark behind the Harris Farm building will be temporarily closed during the paving works. 

Decisions about tree removal aren’t taken lightly

Lane Cove Council has an Urban Forest Strategy and the Council’s expert arborists balance a range of factors to achieve our goal of long-term canopy increase in our area.

The strategy is about tree maintenance - not only tree preservation. Trees do not live forever and a tree’s life expectancy can be compromised if it’s grown in challenging environments that create tree stress. 

The 5 trees potentially to be removed on Burns Bay Road were planted in the 1970s-1980s when planting methods were poor and created sub-optimum conditions for the trees. Due to the large amount of surrounding hard surface area, the majority of trees in the area have an expected shortened life expectancy of 5-10 years.

No hollows or existing habitat (i.e. bird nests) have been identified in any of the 5 trees.

Sadly, other established trees in this area might also have to be removed in the next decade due to ill health or coming to the end of life.

In good news: planting methods at Lane Cove Council have greatly improved in the last decades to ensure the long-term viability of newly planted trees. So the species that replace any trees removed should go the distance.

The current situation with each of the 5 trees

Of the 5 trees marked for removal, 2 can potentially be saved. An arborist will be on-site to advise.

This is a summary of the arborists’ assessment of the trees.

Tree 1: Grey gum, on the south side of Burns Bay Rd, near the pedestrian crossing - potential removal

This tree has an extensive lean in it and is of poor quality with little canopy. It has a low capacity to survive the pedestrian upgrade works.

Tree 2: Located near Harris Farm Markets - potential removal

This tree has limbs currently banging the building in wind conditions and a split trunk. If the tree is left and the branches pruned near the building it will leave a large open wound. The risk of pathogens entering the tree is high. It is already under stress and reaching premature life expectancy due to poor growing conditions. The species will also produce epicormic growth which is not to current Australian standards for tree management.

Tree 3: Near Pet-O

This tree has a girdled root system - the roots are growing closely around the tree instead of branching out. This is due to poor planting methods and plant choice.

Tree 4 + 5: Trees that might be able to be saved

Both trees have had shallow side roots develop above the concrete foundation and below the pavers. When the pavers have been lifted, the arborist will advise on whether they need to be removed. 

The arborists will need to remove the roots that have grown above the concrete and below the pavers.

10 new trees will be planted

New trees will be planted as part of the pedestrian upgrade along the north and south sides of the road.

All trees that are removed will have the stumps deep ground and new soil installed. They will be replaced with Angophora species that will be 3 metres high at planting. There is an expectation that their tree canopy will be similar to those of the trees lost in 5 years.

The expected life span of the new trees will be 80-100 years as they are more tolerant of the conditions in the area.

They’ll also likely have minimal limb drop, which is important in a heavy pedestrian area.

The trees will be planted with root barriers. This planting technique encourages roots to grow down into the soil before spreading sideways, reducing the likelihood of a repeat of roots causing paving issues.

What about a circular economy approach to waste?

I am always going to have questions about creative ways we can avoid waste in our area which is why I asked:

1. Could we repurpose the timber?

At the moment the most cost-effective solution is to mulch onsite. The mulch is then taken to Blackman Park and can be used for free by our residents.

I asked if the wood could be retained, or used by the Lane Cove Men’s Shed, or residents, or kept and used as a climbing sculpture. You might be familiar with the large Angophora at the Lane Cove Tennis Club that has been kept in this way.

I was told that the Council doesn’t have the facility to store and season wood and it needs to be done in a certain way to avoid cracking.

Please get in touch if you can assist with something like this. One suggestion was that we could engage the Men's Shed to use some of the wood to make our Lane Cove Community Awards.

2. Could we reuse the pavers?

The old pavers will be crushed and recycled. In the previous stage of pedestrian upgrades, the community was asked if they’d like any of the pavers. This enabled a considerable amount to be reused rather than recycled. Staff believe that this avenue has now been exhausted. 

However, please get in touch with the Council if you could make use of any of the existing pavers.

What’s next?

I hate to see trees cut down but after my conversations with Council staff, I can understand the decision-making and think the result will be positive.

A request was made for Lane Cove Council to upload a visual copy of the plans, plus further detailed information to the Council website.

The Council website now has an explanation and plan of the project. The article also includes the arborist’s report on the trees that need to be removed and ones that need further assessment once works commence.  

I hope this has helped shed some light on the decisions for everyone.

UPDATE: Good news from Taronga Zoo

Locals know when you post on In the Cove, good things can happen! Taronga Zoo reached out after seeing the discussions on Facebook about the tree removals on Burns Bay Road. One of the trees marked to be cut down is the main source of food for Koalas.

Taronga's horticultural department has said they'd love to work with Lane Cove Council to take this tree and any other Eucalypt prunings in the area. They'll be used to feed not only their koalas, but also the giraffes and primates.

They take them fresh soon after pruning or they are cut down.

Taronga currently works with North Sydney Council and they gather food for koalas with prunings from Callum Park. Now conversations between Lane Cove Council and Taronga are underway!

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This article was last updated 2 September