February 3, 2016
On January 4, Trees Sacramento, of which ECOS is a participating member, delivered a community letter on the Tree Ordinance Revision proposed by city staff. The current update of that letter can be read on the excerpt of the letter, below.
Over the last month Trees Sacramento has discussed these issues and received more input. The result is hopefully a more polished and persuasive statement of our concerns about the staff draft and suggestions for improvements.
Key points*:
– ordinance should be consistent with and support General Plan Urban Forestry goals, the 2012 Climate Action Plan and the existing Urban Forestry Management Plan.
– keep appeal of protected tree removal to Park and Rec Commission
– all city owned trees should be protected and preserved and maintained by city
– replacement should be required for any protected tree removal, not just at the discretion of the director, and all new projects should have tree requirements
– do not make it easier to remove healthy, functioning urban forest – use objective criteria for tree removal
– retain Dutch elm disease ordinance or language to cover rapid response to infectious tree disease
– better notice and appeal procedures for tree removals
– ensure protection of migratory raptor nesting by permittees and contractors
– the ordinance needs better enforcement and reporting requirements
