Councillor David McManus (Fine Gael) has called on South Dublin County Council to urgently change its tree management policy after a car was recently damaged by a fallen branch in Rathfarnham. The vehicle was parked on a public road near trees that are ‘twice the height of nearby family homes’ according to Councillor McManus. The large branch fell on to the roof of a family car, smashing the rear window.
The recently elected Deputy Mayor for South Dublin commented ‘In this instance, I am relieved that no one was seriously injured or even killed by this enormous, dangerous tree. This car will cost thousands of euros to be repaired – a cost that could have been avoided if this tree were maintained. The areas of Rathfarnham and Templeogue that I represent have massive trees that are unsuitable to the area. Residents are contacting me every week as these trees grow to exceptional heights and have deep roots that can create trip hazards on public footpaths and disrupt underground utilities.’
Councillor McManus continued ‘I believe council policy is too rigid and needs to be more flexible to ensure dangerous trees are addressed. I feel the council are pandering to tree huggers that are only a vocal minority and will always complain any time a tree is pruned or removed for being diseased or dead. We have to use common sense in how we manage trees.’
South Dublin County Council previously revealed that a review of claims since 2015 showed €21,500 in costs for eight cases where property damage only was claimed and where a tree was mentioned in the circumstances. These figures do not include accidents involving trees which have occurred in storm conditions.
