Editor:

A few words regarding the article about the “diseased and dying” trees that were cut down along the Roaring Fork River in the River Meadows mobile home park in Glenwood. If these trees were diseased and dying, then the park manager and the “tree care” contractor were right. They needed to be cut down.

There’s only one problem: I don’t think they were diseased.

I was there that day and watched mature, healthy cottonwoods, full of buds ready to open, cut down one by one, then sawed into pieces and taken away. In the process, the ground cover plants covering the ground around them and the river bank were cleared away, leaving bare soil in their place. Am I wrong, or are tree roots and grasses the very things that stabilize river banks and help prevent erosion?

The reasons given for the destruction were, “diseased and dying trees,” “protecting the homes and their residents,” and “making room for a berm.” The few dead branches on some of the trees could have been trimmed back without cutting down the whole tree. The berm can’t be built because it’s against the city ordinance, and the only trees left behind are the ones closest to the houses. So, which is it?

The park manager stated she gave notice. Unfortunately, in this case, “as quick as I could” meant heavy equipment and chainsaws showing up at the front door. Surprise.

Cutting down the trees has now destabilized the river bank, exposing the residents and homes, not to mention the wildlife, to more potential danger than before.

It’s understandable for property owners to try to protect what’s theirs, but is that what’s been accomplished here?

Eric Holtz
Carbondale