LETTER

On Mr Wong’s appeal to keep trees 

“Trees improve the livability of our cities in countless ways. They produce oxygen and clean carbon dioxide from the air we breathe and reduce smog.  Trees lower temperatures with shade, helping to reduce air conditioning bills and energy use.  They protect our land by preventing erosion and retaining water in the soil to prevent flooding. Houses with trees have shown a consistent 10-15% increase in property value. Finally, the benefits of providing natural habitats for birds and other native wildlife, are immeasurable.”

What trees will not do is they can’t be sold, or leased out, or turned into advertising or immediate money.  Developers will cut the trees, build more and more for those who insist on individual homes on half-acre lots – just like the 1950s, right? – and then leave for someplace they think will protect them for their last years against an Earth in revolt. The South will be hot and dry, resort islands underwater, and infestations of water-borne diseases and tropical parasites will plague the cities. They may laugh at us, left stuck in snow-bound cities here, but we’ll welcome them back with wide-open cell-doors. 

Andy Black

Aylmer nord