CITY’S TREES FACE GROWING RISK
Dead cottonwoods at City Hall cut downs as officials warn of climate change effects
Ahandful of dead trees that had been standing outside City Hall since the days when it was Santa Fe High School were cut down over the weekend amid safety concerns.
But the cottonwoods outside City Hall aren’t the first and may not be the last trees to be whacked on city-owned properties.
Late last year, the city Parks and Recreation Department embarked on an audit of dead and dying trees and will be pruning or removing them — but only as a last resort, said John Muñoz, the department’s director.
“This is collateral damage caused by climate change and in reality one of the daunting issues of our lifetime because climate change is changing our ecosystem,” he wrote in an email. “The U.S. Forest Service states we will see significant tree loss by 2027 so it’s a
race against time.”
Mayor Alan Webber said the city is worried about the health of the trees on the Santa Fe Plaza.
“They’re at risk,” Webber observed, adding the city is looking into ways to save trees.
Muñoz said there are many factors affecting Santa Fe’s trees. Disease and pests such as European elm scale, spruce beetles and Janet’s looper caterpillar are significant threats, he said. The city employs “natural and organic methods to protect our trees and vegetation,” he wrote.
“It takes extra time and extra resource but definitely it is a reasonable approach,” he said in an email. “It’s heartbreaking that disease and climate change impact the health of our trees and limit their life cycle.”
The removal of trees requires “a thorough and mindful process” and approvals from the Land Use Department, he said.
The trees outside City Hall became a “public safety issue” due to the weight of some branches and had to go, Muñoz said.
“Branch dieback and overall decline continued despite wellintended and executed efforts of the tree managers,” he said in an email. “There were several cavities around the base of the trunks and in crotches. Bark was oozing on the trees and dead roots were reported.”
In an interview Wednesday, Muñoz said the city will replace every tree that’s removed. He said his department is proposing to replace the trees at City Hall with oaks or redbuds. There are 52 trees on the City Hall campus, he said.
“We will be proposing modernization of our irrigation systems, which is sorely needed for proper water but also for the efficient use of water,” he said. “Another enhancement I am requesting is a forester position and a full-time and dedicated trees crew and [to] begin a focused approach on how to shield what are the longestliving organisms on our planet … from the effects of climate change and soil compaction.”
The predominant species in the city’s inventory are cottonwoods, which require a lot of water, as well as ash, oaks and Chinese elms, which are classified as a weed and out-compete native trees, he said.
Muñoz encouraged Santa Feans to assess the trees on their properties, too.
“As often as people can, I think it’s important to do their own assessments and then call in experts like an arborist and have him or her come in and look at the trees,” he said. “Unfortunately, climate change doesn’t just impact City Hall and our properties. It’s impacting all of us.”
As for the trees on the downtown Plaza, Muñoz said it’s too early to say whether any trees will have to be cut down.
“We’re going through our assessment process,” he said. “Hopefully not, but after our assessment, we’ll figure it out.”
Muñoz said the number of events on the Plaza has nearly quadrupled from years past, which has affected the health of the trees.
“While [having more events on the Plaza is] absolutely fantastic and amazing, and it’s showcasing our wonderful and historic Plaza, that foot traffic is also causing compaction, so that is distressing the trees,” he said.
The public can pitch in by staying on sidewalks and walkways as much as possible, he said.
“As more feet walk closer to the root system … the soil gets compacted, and it’s just hard to get water down to the root system,” he said.
Muñoz said “it would be nice” if some events now held at the Plaza could be moved to other locations, such as the Santa Fe Railyard or the south side, which would not only help the trees and vegetation on the Plaza but expand the number of locations where community events are held.
“If we do that and give the trees a little bit of relief, we’ll see a longer life cycle,” he said. Follow Daniel J. Chacón on Twitter @danieljchacon.