Important Tree Legislation Hearing

You Don’t Need to Go to the Redwood Forests to See Clear Cutting

240 Trees Cut Down At Hunter’s Point, San Francisco October, 2005
(see attach jpg file)

Alert! Your Support Is Needed to Protect Our Trees!
THE PROPOSED LANDMARK TREE LEGISLATION DOES NOT PROTECT ENOUGH TREES

It is very important that the supervisors hear your concerns. Please lend your support. Attend the tree legislation hearing City Operations & Neighborhood Services Committee Monday, December 5th, at 1pm, City Hall, room 263

Currently, only 100,000 street trees require a public process before removal, leaving 568,000 San Francisco street trees with no due process. Supervisor’s McGoldrick’s landmark tree legislation will protect only 300 additional trees a year. When private property is sold to real estate developers or when large development is planned on city land no trees are protected.

Above the photo show all large trees in 64.5 acres were clear cut at Hunter’s Point, many of landmark quality. The developer’s replacement is a 15 gallon tree, approximately 5 feet tall with a trunk diameter of two inches. A canopy
and grove of equal value will not be regained for another 30 to 40 years, if ever!

Supervisor McGoldrick’s tree legislation does not include a uniform policy for all City departments, including the Recreation & Park Department and SF Redevelopment Agency.

Please tell Supervisor McGoldrick that he must strengthen his tree legislation to include: 1) a uniform tree protection policy for all city departments/agencies, especially RPD & the SFRA, and 2) add protection for all large healthy trees on public and privte land.

Out of all San Francisco’s trees only 12.9% have a trunk diameter of 16 inches or more. Over 50% of SF’s larger, mature trees have been cut down and replaced with newly planted small trees. These trees currently have a trunk diameter of only 3 to 6 inches! It will take many years before these saplings will protect our environmental health or contribute to the beauty of a mature urban forest.

If you cannot attend please tell a friend, write, fax or call Chair McGoldrick, Supervisor Bevan Dufty & Fiona Ma

Jake McGoldrick, Chair: 554-7410 phone / 554-7415 fax, jake.mcgoldrick [at] sfgov.org
Bevan Dufty: 554-6968 phone / 554-6909 fax, bevan.dufty [at] sfgov.org
Fiona Ma: 554-7460 phone / 554-7432 fax, fiona.ma [at] sfgov.org

Send letters to: Board of Supervisors, City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, Room 244,
San Francisco, Ca 94102-4689

Carolyn Blair, Executive Director,
The San Francisco Tree Council, Inc.
Email: Carolyn [at] sftreecouncil.org,
Phone: 415-982-8793