Canberrans will have the opportunity to help design a fairer system for maintaining trees on private leased land as the ACT Government continues to plant more trees across the Territory.
The ACT Government is beginning consultation on improving the Tree Protection Act 2005 to simplify regulation, as well as ensuring that the number of trees planted each year grows.
"Under our existing tree protection laws thousands of trees are removed on leased land in Canberra and not replaced. We want to hear from the community how we can improve this outcome," Minister for City Services Chris Steel said.
"We are specifically asking if the community supports introducing a system offsets so if a tree has to be removed, it will be replaced by one or more new trees.
"The legislation managing trees should contribute to growing our city's tree canopy cover and the sensible management of our urban forest. However, we have also heard from the community that the system of managing trees on private land can be inflexible and we are seeking feedback on how the legislation and strict criteria can be improved.
"The ACT Government has set a target to increase our tree canopy cover to 30% and we are delivering the largest tree planting program this century to help achieve this goal on unleased land.
"We want to hear from the community to look at how we increase the contribution of trees on leased land to enhancing our canopy without significantly impacting the private enjoyment of leased land.
"I encourage the community to come forward about their experiences with our tree laws and where they can be improved and achieve the overall outcome of improving our city's tree canopy coverage," Minister Steel said.
A copy of the discussion paper and survey is available at www.yoursay.act.gov.au or in hard copy at ACT public library branches. Consultation closes 8 December 2019.
