ACT tree assessment and removal law update to include more safety considerations

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The ACT Government has recently modified laws to speed up tree removal in certain circumstances to try to improve safety for Canberrans. It comes as a woman has aired her frustrations, after a branch fell on her home.

Transcript

00:00Terri-Lee Reynolds loves the shade a large gum tree provides her Garen home, but one

00:08particular overhanging branch has always worried her, and last week her fears were realised.

00:14We were both away at the time so we had to ring, you know, pretty panicky, ringing ACT,

00:19SES, the fire brigade, the government, everybody, our insurance company.

00:23This is a street used by school kids and runners and if that branch had hit somebody they would

00:30absolutely be dead.

00:32But she believes the accident was preventable and she'd written to the ACT government several

00:37times asking for permission to remove the branch.

00:40And all I was asking for was me to have approval to pay, we were happy to pay, to have that

00:46branch taken down using one of the government's approved arborists.

00:49Since 2024, all trees on public land in the ACT have been classified as protected, as

00:55have trees above 8 metres on private land.

00:59But following feedback, the government's proposing to tweak the laws to allow for the removal

01:04or trimming of trees that are dead could cause damage to buildings or pose a risk to public

01:09safety.

01:10The government acknowledges the laws as they currently are could cause problems.

01:14But it is in conflict with some other government objectives like public housing, for example.

01:20So we just need to make sure that all of that is working together and that broader review

01:25is underway right now.

01:26The changes are subject to an assembly vote to become law, but the ACT Liberals are petitioning

01:31for the changes to go further.

01:33The petition calls for the government to lower the threshold at which action can be taken

01:41on a dangerous tree, whether that involves removal or lopping the tree, but also to genuinely

01:47take into account the risk to property and life.

01:51In the meantime, Terri Lee Reynolds is simply hoping no more trees come down.

01:55So I'm optimistic that maybe if enough people like me make a noise, then maybe they'll look

02:01at it a bit more.

02:02I don't want more incidents to happen that are dangerous to life and limb for something

02:05to happen.

02:06Terri Lee is facing a months-long wait for the roof repairs.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended