sheffield trees

[daveatdave]

its been kicking off again in Sheffield

4 AM start and masked faces, pulling the xmas lights out of the trees   

[peatff]

Read about this yesterday, ninja tree cutting with Samurai Silkies ? 

[Gary Prentice]

But to put forward the other side of the story, protesters halted work on this road previously (24th November) with one protester entering a cordoned off area, https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/police-called-to-tree-protest-on-christmas-lights-street-in-sheffield-1-8875335 and yesterdays visit was the eleventh visit to this street - according to the Yorkshire Post https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/sheffield-tree-campaigner-describes-horrifying-moment-council-s-saws-hit-trees-at-dawn-in-sleepy-suburb-1-8906597

 

I don't particularly agree with the tree lads or security masking their identities, nor the protestors, but reasonably can't condemn them after the reports of alleged intimidation and threats by a small minority of protesters.

[maria warwick]

"

1 hour ago, Gary Prentice said:

But to put forward the other side of the story, protesters halted work on this road previously (24th November) with one protester entering a cordoned off area, https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/police-called-to-tree-protest-on-christmas-lights-street-in-sheffield-1-8875335 and yesterdays visit was the eleventh visit to this street - according to the Yorkshire Post https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/sheffield-tree-campaigner-describes-horrifying-moment-council-s-saws-hit-trees-at-dawn-in-sleepy-suburb-1-8906597

 

I don't particularly agree with the tree lads or security masking their identities, nor the protestors, but reasonably can't condemn them after the reports of alleged intimidation and threats by a small minority of protesters.

"alleged"

[Gary Prentice]

7 minutes ago, maria warwick said:

"

"alleged"

Sorry Maria, I'm not quite following your point.

 

One of the less biased Sheffield media types wrote an article after interviewing some of the arborists in Sheffield last month.. A few have quit their jobs after threats of violence to both themselves and their families, while others who are still employed have claimed similar intimidation from protesters.

 

I don't know how anyone else feels, but if I go to work to carry out a lawful activity and someone who opposes that threatens me or mine, I'd be mighty pissed.

[carlos]

workers just doing there job shouldn't be put in the firing line.

threatening workers and their families over a tree??? i like trees but i think thats a bit ott.

carl

[Khriss]

Sadly - one of my old bosses running this one - can't say I'm pleased K

 

( He did such good Rail work )

[billpierce]

Yep def not ok threatening people or families over this. Out of order.

However I also do not buy the "they told me to do it" attitude. Ultimately we are all responsible for our actions. If you want to go and cut a load of trees people are up in arms about that's fine with me, but don't expect then to thank you for it.

[Khriss]

'I vos only followink orders ' ( Nuremburg defense ) will not cut it - sadly the guys chopping down aint made the decisions but will bear the brunt of this farce of tree management contract , K

[wjotner]

The protesters represent a small but very vocal minority in Sheffield. Most of whom are liberal house wives and retirees and trust fund kids who have too much time on their hands and need a cause to take up their time standing around on the street yelling abuse and getting in the way of legitimate tree maintenance work.

I've heard of lots of incidents where local residents who want the trees replaced getting into strong and long arguments with protesters who weren't local. On one street, so many of the residents turned out to argue with protesters as they had all petitioned to have their over large and poor conditioned trees removed that the protesters eventually gave up and left the tree surgeons to get on with it.

 

There's plenty of tree surgeons out there that just hear about this on the grapevine or on media and want to pass judgement - but i know guys who've worked on this contract. They're not taking part in a mindlessly destructive deforestation of Sheffield. The tree felling is just a part of a major and long overdue overhaul of the deteriorating, aging and badly maintained tree stock on Sheffield's highways. Most of the trees are getting replaced. Apparently, most of the trees getting felled are crappy overlarge ash, lime and cherry pulling up pavements and tarmac and that have been lopped/topped in past decades then left to regrow out of control with decay forming in the large old wounds - barely worth saving.