Dairy Farm condo wants to cut down 4 'healthy trees', residents plan to protest 'with their bodies'

Residents of the Dairy Farm Estate condominium are up in arms over their management's plan to cut down four apparently healthy khaya trees in their estate.

More than 200 people have signed a petition to save the trees located beside Block 9 of the estate.

Some residents didn't agree with cutting down the trees as they dispute an arborist report provided by the management, claiming it could be rigged.

They plan to sit around the trees in protest of the tree-cutting scheduled for Sep. 21.

Another tree fell during storm in June

A resident interviewed by Mothership, Petra (not her real name), said the decision to cut down the trees was made after another khaya tree fell during a storm in June.

The falling tree also damaged a car.

Following the incident, the management hired an arborist to assess the estate's trees.

In August, they announced the decision to cut down four more khaya trees for safety reasons, Petra said.

The decision upset Petra.

She said that the trees help prevent soil erosion and drain water, reducing the risk of mosquito breeding.

They also serve as habitats for other local birds, squirrels and wildlife, she added.

According to the NParks website, the Khaya senegalensis is a hardy and fast-growing tree, originally from Africa, that can grow up to 30m tall.

One such tree is listed as a Heritage Tree in Singapore and can be found at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Controversy

A number of Dairy Farm Estate residents protest the decision to cut down the trees.

A Change.org petition to save the trees started in mid-August has garnered 240 signatures as of Sep. 20.

Based on photos shared by a resident, the trees boast verdant foliage, and each appears to be at least seven storeys tall.

The petition claimed that the arborist engaged by the management to perform the assessment was employed by the same landscaping company that manages the estate, which posed a "potential conflict of interest".

Another resident, Lilian (not her real name), told Mothership that she felt "something was fishy" as the same company would be paid to remove the trees.

Petra claimed that the management "refused to hear arguments against the decision" at a town hall meeting on Aug. 19.

Other residents volunteered to pay an independent arborist to conduct an assessment out of their own pocket, but she said these offers were not taken up.

Further controversy arose over the authenticity of the arborist's report.

In the arborist's initial July report provided to Mothership by a resident, he assessed that the four trees in question were healthy, and recommended that they be pruned and monitored every six months.

However, in a revised report dated the same day, the arborist recommended that the four healthy trees be removed and replaced with medium-sized trees as the "recent fallen tree case and property damage increases the likelihood of failure".

All other indicators — except the recommendations — had been unchanged from the initial assessment.

According to a post in the "Dairy Farm Estate condo residents" Facebook group, the arborist allegedly told more than 20 residents at a Sep. 18 engagement session that the reason for the two conflicting reports was "because the MCST told him to change it".

The post indicated that the owners present at the meeting intend to issue a stop-work order in order to prevent the trees from being felled.

Residents plan to 'protect trees with their bodies'

However, as of Sep. 19, the trees have already been cordoned off.

According to a management notice to residents, the tree-cutting and pruning exercise will be carried out from Sep. 16 till the end of October.

Mothership understood from Lilian that the trees are scheduled to be cut down on Sep. 21.

"The trees survived the worst storm and proved their strength, but they can't escape humans," Lilian remarked.

Workers were already seen removing the surrounding foliage on Sep. 20.

Pruning works were also done.

Some residents plan to sit in protest beside the trees to prevent them from being cut down.

Petra said that around 10 people showed up in support on Sep. 20.

"People are planning to protest and protect the trees with their bodies," she added.

Mothership has reached out to the Dairy Farm Estate management council for comment.

Top image courtesy of Petra