Human rights lawyer Deborah Manning wants to save pine trees from being felled at Western Springs.
Human rights lawyer Deborah Manning wants to save pine trees from being felled at Western Springs.
Prominent human rights lawyer Deborah Manning is stepping up the fight to save a group of pine trees in Auckland's Western Springs, claiming Auckland Council is failing to meet basic risk assessment standards for removing trees.
Manning, best known for acting in the Algerian refuge Ahmed Zi case, is critical of how council and its independent arborist have planned to fell nine mature pine trees using emergency powers.
Both council and the Tree Council have disputed Manning's arguments, saying council follows internationally recognised risk assessment practices.
It has just got its gold card
Manning, who moved into a house overlooking the pine trees just before Christmas last year, has become actively involved in a resource consent application from council to fell 13 mature pine trees considered to be at risk of failing in regenerating native forest overlooking Western Springs lake.
"What we have uncovered in this process is there is no standard methodology by council with regard to tree assessment, tree hazard and risk assessment and tree removal. What council does is ask technical and independent experts for their opinion based on their professional judgment and then that is what is followed," she said.
Manning said evidence from an Australian arborist, Marcus James, to the consent hearing said the consultant arborist used by council, Gerald Collett, had not followed industry best practice.
Collett would not comment, saying anything about his work was available within council.
Manning went as far to say Auckland Council does not have a tree policy, saying it immediately needs to adopt standards for tree removals.
In the case of Western Springs, she said the last stages of forests are mature and over mature, and it is still mature - "It has just got its gold card".
Human rights lawyer Deborah Manning has a new fight on her hands - saving pine trees from being felled at Western Springs.
Her views are shared by environmental activist Steve Abel, who said a consultant arborist determined all 203 pines in the forest should come down in one foul swoop. That would be a catastrophic event ecologically and for residents, he said.
Council community facilities general manager Rod Sheridan said council adopted a best practice approach for removing trees, including a risk matrix using Tree Risk Assessment Qualification and the UK's Quantified Tree Risk Assessment.
He said council uses independent experts, such as Collett, for reasons of impartiality on resource consent applications, which is standard practice for all council resource consents.
Lisa Prager, spokesperson of Occupy Garnet Road protest group with the stand of pine trees at Western Springs, that Auckland Council wants to chop down.
Tree Council chairman and arborist Sean Freeman agreed with Auckland Council's practice of using two systems.
"I don't think the council is operating outside the industry best practice," he said.
Having looked at the pines in Western Springs, Freeman said there are major issues with the trees, but believed council had dropped the ball in terms of communicating the problems and disappointed at how council initially planned to fell the trees.
"It would appear from the outset the chosen methodology to remove the trees did not place enough emphasis on ensuring as far as practical to protect the regenerating native vegetation," he said.
Planning commissioners are currently hearing the resource consent application for removal of the trees.
