An indigenous tree in Louis Trichardt was temporarily saved by the swift action of community members. Their happiness was, however, short-lived.

A red milkwood tree, standing on the sidewalk of the construction site on the corner of Anderson and Songozwi Street, was in danger of being felled down. Resident Ms Annette Kennealy, however, kept her eyes wide open to watch out for the indigenous trees on the sidewalk.

“Indigenous trees cannot be felled unnecessarily. We should always try to see if we cannot preserve them by working around them,” Ms Kennealy said.

On Thursday, November 12, she saw that the construction workers had started chopping the branches of the milkwood tree. She called her father, Dr Lappies Labuschagne, who is fluent in Venda and he spoke to workers. Dr Labuschagne explained that the milkwood tree was actually standing on the sidewalk and could be regarded as community property. Their next step was to employ the help of the Democratic Alliance, who in turn called on the Green Scorpions.

“The Green Scorpions were extremely helpful and reacted immediately. Unfortunately, huge damage had already been done to the tree,” said DA Councillor Brian du Plooy.

A senior official from environmental affairs on the scene pointed out that a special permit could be obtained to remove trees standing in the way of development. In this case, no permit was obtained beforehand, and he instructed the workers to stop until such time that the necessary permit was obtained.

Three lover’s happiness was, however, short-lived. By Tuesday afternoon the tree was completely chopped down and removed after the developers obtained the necessary permit. A bit of good news is that the development, upon completion, provides for the planting of numerous other indigenous trees on the site.

Following the incident, the DA issued a statement to commend residents and the Green Scorpions for their action and to remind residents of the importance of identifying indigenous trees before felling them.

The Green Scorpions can be contacted on 082 463 9519.