Cllrs call for safety audit of Offaly's trees after Éowyn

THE Councillors of Birr Municipal District are calling for a safety audit of trees throughout Offaly following the devastation wreaked by Storm Éowyn.
The Councillors said they had received a lot of calls from concerned members of the public in the days after the storm, expressing their concerns about the thousands of trees throughout the county which are near buildings or beside roads.
Cllr Peter Ormond, Cathaoirleach, said he got a lot of calls from members of the public "who are worried about the safety of trees in their vicinity."
Cllr John Leahy said every tree which is within a hundred metres of a building should be examined by tree surgeons and it should be determined whether they are in danger of falling or not. “If they are potentially dangerous, because they are sick or dead, then we should immediately cut them down.”
The Director of Services Ann Dillon told Cllr Leahy that it's not the Council's duty to cut down trees, but the landowner's. This situation applies to roadside trees as well. It is only the road surface and road drainage which the Council has responsibility for.
Cllr John Leahy said he didn't agree with this approach by the Councils and the government should change it. “The damage during Storm Éowyn cost millions,” he pointed out, “and 90% of this damage was caused by trees falling on power lines. The government should authorise the Councils to cut down the trees which might fall in future storms. If we can't get Wayleaves to access the dangerous trees then we should resort to a compulsory tree felling situation.”
Cllr Leahy said undergrounding all the power lines throughout the county would be far too costly, and tree felling was the only answer. He added that the voltage passing through many power lines is too high for undergrounding. “The ground would become dangerously shot through with high voltage, a danger to people and animals. It wouldn't be possible.”
Cllr Leahy said he would raise the topic at next week's monthly meeting of the plenary Council. “I know all the Birr MD Councillors support me in my call for a safety audit.”
Cllr Hughie Egan said he is a landowner himself. He said many of the trees could be topped, a process which wouldn't kill them, rather than completely cut down. “Ash dieback is a major problem,” Cllr Egan added. “They are dead because of the disease and could fall at any moment.”
Acting Area Engineer Pat Dermody outlined the Council's response to Storm Éowyn. “Our works began on Friday January 24th once the red alert had ended. The works continued on Saturday and the following week until everything was cleared or made safe. 80 or so trees were dealt with in Birr Municipal District; 60 or so calls were taken. Most of the roads were back open to traffic by 6pm on Friday January 24th. Clearing works were hindered by the fact that staff also had to deal with winter maintenance over the weekend.
“I want to compliment our outdoor staff for the manner in which they dealt with issues as they arose. Thank you to the management team for their support and the elected representatives for letting us know of trees that were down or causing problems."
Cllr Ormond praised the engineer and his staff for the efficient way they tackled the problems arising from the storm. “January is always challenging,” commented Councillor Ormond, “but it was especially challenging this year, what with the freezing conditions and one of the worst storms in Ireland's history. Thank you to the staff for making everything as safe and workable as they possibly could, whether it was gritting the roads during the freezing temperatures or removing trees after the storm.”
Cllr Seán Maher echoed Cllr Ormond's comments, and extended his gratitude to all the emergency services that dealt with the tough conditions during and after the storm.
“Hundreds of trees fell,” remarked Cllr Maher. “A lot of people have contacted me since, saying they are concerned about standing trees which could fall over in the future, onto houses or power lines. I agree with Cllr Leahy. We should do a safety audit.”
The Engineer asked the Councillors to “talk to me about any trees which you are particularly concerned about and I will have a look at them.”
Cllr Leahy also praised the outdoor staff. “The Council's dedicated contact line during the storm was also very helpful,” he remarked.