Council picks up the tab for private trees downed by Storm Ophelia
NO LANDOWNERS ASKED TO PAY AS COUNCIL PAYS PRIVATE CONTRACTORS TO CLEAR TREES
THERE was a hefty €189,000 bill for Cork County Council after it hired private contractors to clear felled trees from 60 locations after Storm Ophelia in the Macroom and Blarney regions.
However, a policy in place by the council means that council staff cannot use chainsaws and that policy will not change anytime soon, which greatly irked councillors with some saying landowners must pick up the tab for felled trees and not the council.
Cllr Des O’Grady (SF) said: “If there were up to 60 trees removed then that would be €3,000 per tree. The council is hiring private contractors to use chainsaws and yet there isn’t any cost to the owners of the trees. The people must be billed for the work which was carried out for them. While 80 letters have been sent out the owners must be followed up on this.”
At the Blarney Macroom municipal district meeting, Cllr O’Grady said that council crews are “wasting their time” attending to felled trees as it’s private contractors who are doing the job.
In a written response, James Dwyer, Senior Executive Engineer at Blarney-Macroom, wrote that the number of trees cleared by council crews on their own would have been small and that these would have been light branches or trees which could be moved without the use of chainsaws.
Council crews utilising private chainsaw contractors would have cleared approximately 60 locations, some of which would have involved the removal of multiple trees.
He said he estimated that there were approximately 50 locations where private landowners or individuals would have cleared trees. However, by their nature these may not have been reported to the council.
The entire cost of works post Storm Ophelia, which occurred on October 16, 2017 was approximately €189,000 in the Blarney Macroom region. ‘No costs were sought from private landowners,’ he wrote.
‘Prior to the storm, I am not aware of any reports in relation to specific dangerous roadside trees in the area. Since the storm approximately 80 letters have been sent to landowners in relation to roadside trees and hedges,’ stated Mr Dwyer. He added that the cost would have included council labour costs and private chainsaw contractors.
Area engineer Andy O’Brien said that Storm Ophelia was a natural disaster. “This was an emergency. We worked with the contractors,” he said.
Cllr Michael Creed (FG) said: “I think Cllr O’Grady has been unfair to council workers and landowners. During Storm Ophelia, I saw numerous landowners who were out in force and cutting down falling trees and clearing roads. A tree could fall anywhere.”
Chairing the meeting, Cllr Kevin Conway (Ind) said: “Trees and overhanging trees are an on-going problem. Landowners are ignoring the letters sent by the council. I know a farmer who has three farms and the trees are in the same condition in all farms. Where somebody is ignoring the situation they should be billed for it and if word got out then that would be the problem solved.”
Jim Molloy, SEO (Senior Executive Officer) of Municipal District Operations and Rural Development told the councillors that there is a council policy that council staff do not use chainsaws. He said that policy is very unlikely to change. “This is not a resource issue but a policy issue on Health and Safety grounds,” he said twice.
Cllr O’Grady said he has never criticised council staff and they do a tremendous job. “But there are repeat offenders who own trees that have fallen at the same time on the same road owned by the same landowners. But yet, the council are left to pick up the tab. I don’t want to see that continue. I don’t agree with the council policy on chainsaws,” he said