BASSENDEAN council has taken a clear stance on supporting the retention of trees through a motion that was carried at their most recent ordinary council meeting on March 26.
Bassendean Tree Canopy Advocates member Alex McKellar made a statement in favour of updates to policies aiming to limit the unnecessary removal of significant trees on private property by requiring development approval from the council before any works are undertaken.
In the same meeting, two different motions supporting the maintenance of tree canopies were also unanimously carried by council.
One motion proposed the Town of Bassendean look into all the ways Hamilton Reserve could be turned into an “urban forest/living stream” or “regenerated wetlands” to expand the Bassendean urban tree canopy and vegetation.
It was noted within that motion the outlined solutions would assist in carbon capture, help ecosystems thrive and provide enhanced public health benefits.
The second motion focused on achieving a near continuous tree canopy on residential verges in all areas of the town to hit the target of 30 per cent tree canopy in the Town of Bassendean by 2040.
This decision comes after the City of Kalamunda chose to loosen their bylaws relating to the removal of trees on residential properties, as previously reported in Applause as Kalamunda bins tree retention policy.
Kalamunda residents were divided at the February 27 ordinary council meeting where some members of the public voiced their frustrations about requiring approval to remove trees on their property while others provided deputations in favour of the tree retention policy.
These latest council developments form part of a bigger conversation about the protection of significant trees on private land and preventing loss of canopy cover in urban areas across the state.
WA Local Government Association released a model local planning policy earlier in March, as previously reported in LGAs move to protect mature urban trees on private land (Echo News, March 15), to support local government efforts to maintain tree canopies by standardising the method councils can use to regulate tree removal.
