Dear Tree Supporter,
Below is a summary of the meeting held at Wallasey Town Hall on 2nd July. You can view the meeting for yourself on:
WirralCouncilWebcasting; Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee 2.7.19. Last item on agenda presented to Cllr Chris Blakeley (chair) by Cllr Christina Muspratt :
Thank you to all the tree supporters who attended.
On 2 July 2019 Council Officer David Armstrong reported that the Council are “currently engaged in a programme of extensive backlog maintenance to do with trees” He stated: “I assure you we are just carrying out maintenance and we have got a lot of work to do”…”people are polarised, people who want it done and many who are absolutely opposed”…”this is having implications for people trying to carry out the works”…”I can understand why people are upset “. He then continued to emphasize the wish to move onto the tree removal from school grounds; Considering the ‘student strikes for climate’ this is a grotesque proposal; schools need to invest in cleaner air for which trees and dense vegetation around schools are essential. He referred to the policing which is needed increasingly as the public stand up against the felling; Yet the Aarhus Convention legally obliges us as members of the public to protect our natural environment.
The council has a responsibility to educate these “people who want it carried out” to understand the implications of habitat removal and destruction, now that we face the Climate Emergency. Of course the profiteers from the timber will be amongst this group; Beyond Mancoed; who are these profiteers?…What do they have to gain?….they have everything to lose, as do we all…
Now so many of us have paved gardens as car parks, we are all reliant on public trees being our oxygen banks.
The good news is; the ‘For Trees’ team have been working on a tree strategy/policy for Wirral and as an outcome of the above meeting there has been a ‘Tree Strategy Councillor Group’ set up to meet twice a year. Will this be sufficient and in time to save the trees ear-marked in the Council’s “workload backlog” ??!
Please relay to your three local Councillors that we need them to help save Wirral’s trees. And feel free to share your correspondence, anonymously or otherwise
Many thanks,
The ‘For Trees’ team
Fatalities in ‘Daily or Normal Life’
The following table compares the calculated risks that are experienced in ‘daily or normal life’.
| Annual risk of death | Annual risk | Annual risk per million |
| All causes, aged 45-64 (England and Wales, 2003) (1) |
1 in 190 | 5263 |
| All causes, aged 30-44 (England and Wales, 2003) (1) |
1 in 940 | 1064 |
| Accidents in the home, all ages (England and Wales, 2004) (3) |
1 in 17,000 | 59 |
| Road accidents (Great Britain, 2010) (2) |
1 in 32,000 | 31 |
| Injuries to all employees in different industries (Great Britain, average 2001/02-2005/06) (4) |
1 in 140,000 |
7 |
| Insignificant or Trivial Risk (HSE) | 1 in 1,000,000 | 1 |
| Lightning (5) | 1 in 19,000,000 | 0.05 |
| Trees on public land (incl. tree surgeons and fellers; statistically the majority group) | 1 in 20,000,000 | 0.05 |
- Office for National Statistics Focus on Health
- Department for Transport Road Casualties Great Britain: 2010
- Office for National Statistics Mortality Statistics – Injury and poisoning
- Health and Safety Commission Statistics of Fatal Injuries 2005/06
- Deaths and injuries caused by lightning in the United Kingdom: analyses of two databases, D M Elsom, Tornado and Storm Research Organisation, 2000
Additional Reference: National Tree Safety Group-Common sense risk management
Wirralleaks 
As a recent incomer to Wirral, I have already come across anti-tree residents! Wirral has truly wonderful green areas and stunningly beautiful trees. Everything possible should be done to protect them. The “For Trees” team have my full support.
The ‘snowflakes’ are at it again. The chances of death by falling trees is negligible as can be seen from the table of risk below. No real risk whatsoever so leave trees alone, they are much needed for our health and environment.
What is the calculated risk of a tree falling onto a Wirral Councillor’s head, bouncing up and down, repeatedly drumming him into the ground – like in the Wile E Coyote / Road runner cartoons – and then a bolt of lighting setting his combover on fire and finishing him off ?
G’day Paul
There’s more chance of a tree falling on Davies, Davies, Jones, Jones, Armstrong, Ball, Williamson than those pricks being open honest and transparent about Wirral “Funny” Bizz and their £2,000,000.00 knock off.
Ooroo
James
Notice to all clowncil workers….
The above are all lying cheating scum bag arseholes and when you see them tell them I said so.
Luv yer la’s XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
I bet even the trees in the Clown Hall are fakes.