26 October 2017
By Tom Collins
tom@TheCork.ie
Labour Party Representative* in Cork Peter Horgan has urged private property owners to check the status of trees on their property following Storms Ophelia and Brian.
Peter Horgan (Labour)
“The work of the emergency services and City Council staff in responding and clearing up tree incidents was second to none,” said Mr Horgan.
“However, as we take stock of the aftermath and look at tree stocks on public land, private owners must be encouraged to assess their own land. Many private residences have large conurbations of trees that overlook properties and could cause untold damage of they were to fall.”
Mr Horgan suggested a once off tree topping amnesty be explored with Central Government to secure all tree stock in the city and County.
“Government has said that money will not be an issue. The aftermath of these storms is not Int to clear up the damage caused but to reinforce ourselves against future damage. Many homeowners are slow to tackle high trees in their gardens so perhaps a once off payment to tree surgeons operating on behalf of City Council would assess them? It is worth having the conversation and the cost benefit would be minimal, compared to what would happen should some of these trees fall.”
“Climate Change is here to stay and storms like we experience in the last fortnight are going to become more regular. We need imaginative solutions and proposals to ensure that climate change in Cork is managed correctly and safely.” he concluded.
* A Party Representative is a ‘Councillor in waiting’. They are person appointed by a political party to represent an area. Most parties will put their Reps forward for election to County or City Council at the next opportunity.
