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Boro designated ‘Tree City USA’
(by Megan Burrow - April 29, 2008)
For the fifth year in a row, the Borough of Westwood has been designated “Tree City ,” by the National Arbor Day Foundation and for the second year in a row, the borough has received a Tree City Growth Award.
At the April 22 council meeting, Councilman Peter Grefrath presented Ginny Sauer of the Shade Tree Committee with a proclamation for its work in achieving the designation.
According to the Arbor Day Foundation’s Web site, there are 3,216 Tree City communities, 503 have received a growth award, and over 120 million people in the live in a Tree City. In order to be named a Tree City, a community must meet four standards: maintain a tree board or department, have a tree care ordinance on the books, have a community forestry program with at least $2 per capita spent on trees and tree care, and have an arbor day observance and proclamation. To receive a growth award, a community must go above and beyond these basic criteria.
In order to be eligible for the award, a community must apply through the State Forester Office and garner 10 points worth of value from about 35 different possible areas. Shade Tree Committee Chairperson Linda Hayes, who has been involved with the organization for the last 10 years, said she is “thrilled” Westwood achieved the title again and said the committee has put in around 500 volunteer hours in the past year working towards this goal. “Everyone on the committee is very dedicated to the trees in the town and keeping the town as it always has been,” Hayes said. “We feel trees are a very important part of the community.”
Hayes gives the Department of Public Works a lot of credit for the award, saying the department is “a huge part of what we do. They are a great help.” The committee also works closely with code officials looking at trees that will be cut down on properties during construction and making sure homeowners and businesses do not remove more than the maximum five trees allowed each year.
The Shade Tree Committee is hoping to raise public awareness of the importance of trees as well as dispel some misconceptions. Hayes said that although many people in town ask the committee about trees being pruned overzealously near wires, it is actually PSE&G who handles this task and acts within its own practices. Likewise, street trees often have their branches or roots cut by sidewalk contractors or landscapers, but no street tree should be touched without the consent of the DPW. Sauer said the committee “feels strongly about this and we deal with it all the time.” She said cutting the roots weakens the tree, and can cause it to topple during a storm.
The committee plans on planting 70 new trees in the upcoming year. It is also hoping to obtain a grant from the state to enable the borough to do a tree inventory of the entire town, which would tell the health and age of every tree in Westwood. “Being a Tree City is helpful in applying for grants,” Hayes explained.
Megan Burrow's e-mail address is burrow@northjersey.com.
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