Following a month of input and votes by city councilors, Springfield now has new language on the books that defines and clarifies rules and protections for trees.
There was no opposition on March 18 when the council passed a lengthy ordinance updating city code chapter 368, simply entitled “Trees.”
According to the city council, it’s one of the most significant updates to how the city defines and protects public trees since the 1970s.
One of the city officials who helped get the ordinance put together and passed was Springfield City Forester Alex Sherman, who explained to both the council and WAMC that most of what the five-page ordinance does is bring the code in line with Mass General Law, Chapter 87, which deals with shade trees, their protections, and more.
“It provides protections for our public trees - it outlines clear guidelines and procedures for working around and on public trees,” Sherman told the council. “It maintains the existing protection for significant trees.”
Referenced by Sherman during the Monday meeting, the “significant tree" ordinance passed in 1976.
As he explains, the language had a focus on protecting historic, large trees in the city. However, as time went on, Sherman says the section was in need of modern language and a significant tune-up.
“What was lacking in the city code was the mechanisms, and really, the clear definitions of how the city manages its public trees on public property,” he told WAMC.
He says the previous rules also lacked language mentioning important, relevant items from Chapter 87.
For example, it now clearly establishes fines for Chapter 87 violations, as well as “significant tree fines,” both totaling $500 per occurrence.
The new ordinance is roughly five times the size of the current trees chapter in the city code.
It also offers definitions for terms like caliper, a critical root zone or a tree protection zone, as well as clear guidelines and procedures for crews that work with public shade trees in the city.
The new ordinance faced no council opposition. Among the proponents was Councilor Kateri Walsh, whose late husband, Daniel M. Walsh, filed the 1976 tree regulations along with then-Councilor Leonard Collamore.
“So, I'm really pleased that you're following up on Danny's original idea,” Walsh said during the meeting. “It’s still protecting the trees, and I'm definitely going to support this.”
Being Springfield, the home of Dr. Seuss, the meeting also featured references to “The Lorax” – the famous children’s book featuring a short, orange character who spoke for the trees.
One of the book’s most recognizable quotes was invoked by Councilor Zaida Govan.
“Unless someone like you - Alex Sherman, Daniel Walsh, us - unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not. So, thank you,” Govan told Sherman.
As Sherman tells WAMC, with the ordinance passed, the next step is getting the word out. He says informing tree removal companies, contractors and others about the new ordinance will be a priority in the months ahead.
