This tree in the Mid-Levels may face destruction thanks to a lack of laws protecting privately-owned trees.  By Winnie Yeung and JoJo Choi The conservation of Hong Kong’s trees has become a contentious issue over the past few years. After a tree fell in Stanley last year, killing a 19-year-old student, people were up in arms, demanding the government prevent such an accident from happening again. But despite the authorities’ most zealous efforts at performing health checks on older trees, more have toppled, causing damage to cars and property. Currently, fear over falling trees have led many to demand that problem trees are cut down or at least tapered down (a practice of cutting off lower branches) to prevent any danger or inconvenience.

The most recent tree to face the axe is a particularly grand specimen located on Leung Fai Terrace in the Mid-Levels. It stands at five stories tall and has been there for many years. Recently, however, local residents have noticed workmen cutting off its branches. No one knows why the perfectly healthy tree has to be tapered in such a way, but no one can do anything about it—the tree is privately owned by the owner of the ground floor flat opposite the tree at 4 Leung Fai Terrace.

Upstairs tenant Svetlana Galiulina woke up one morning to the noise of workers cutting branches off the tree. “To stop them, I reported the case to the police immediately,” she recalls. “They only stopped because I filed a noise complaint, but the following weekend they started all over again.” Galiulina then attempted to find out why the tree was being tampered with in such a manner. She spoke to the owner who told her that he was tired of paying someone to sweep the fallen leaves and branches. The owner could not be reached for comment.

Neighboring residents at 5-6 Leung Fai Terrace also complain that the tree causes them inconvenience, as the leaves and branches drop onto their properties. “Mr. Leung, who lives in Tak Mansion says: “They should cut off the branches of this tree; it causes problems for nearby residents like us.”

The Lands Department has to date received one complaint about the tree, and has never made a recommendation to remove its branches. According to a notice issued by the department on May 18, District Lands Officer Ernest Wong wrote that some of the tree branches were likely to fall and could affect passersby, and asked the owner to hire a specialist to address the problem. But when asked about the tree, Wong said that his letter had never recommended that the tree be tapered; his intention was merely to alert the owner to the complaint.

So is the tapering really necessary? “Tree Doctor” Professor Jim Chi-yung at the University of Hong Kong has examined the tree and says tapering it is unnecessary. “The branches that have been cut look very healthy,” he says. “Random, careless cutting will affect the growth of the tree.” In fact, rather than making the tree safer, Jim worries that uncontrolled tapering will have the opposite effect. “The workers are cutting the tree’s horizontal branches, meaning the tree then has to use the vertical branches as its main food-making source. This means that they will grow heavier and the tree will ultimately be unable to support itself, causing it to fall. He also says that the owners should not have been allowed to taper the tree unless it was proven to be reasonable.  So Kwok-yin, the conservation manager of Conservancy Association, says that many are of the mindset that branches should be cut off preemptively to save trouble and money. “It happens all the time but right now there is nothing the government can do under the current law,” he says.

Earlier this year, Chief Executive Donald Tsang appointed Chief Secretary Henry Tang “Tree Tsar.” He was tasked with coming up with new measures to better manage the system of protecting and maintaining our trees. However, in a report released a few days ago, Tang insisted that there is no need to come up with new tree laws, or revise any existing laws to protect trees, particularly trees belonging to private parties. In other words, privately-owned trees currently have no protection from individual abuse, and will remain unprotected unless the government implements a specific law relating to the protection of trees, as has been urged by green groups.

What Henry Tang has done, however, is set in motion several new policies, including a hotline (1823), which handles all public and private tree-related matters, as well as provide financial and professional support to tree owners to help them better manage their trees. Ultimately however, it takes time to change people’s mindsets, and help them to understand that trees need to be protected, and not trimmed down for their owner’s convenience. So believes that once the policies are implemented, they will help move the government towards drafting a law that will protect our city’s trees.