As many of you know, I have issues about the city of San Francisco and today's rant addresses one of them.
The picture above is one I took yesterday on my travels around town, at the corner of 16th and Harrison. It seems that when a sidewalk tree in San Francisco dies, the Department of Public Works comes along, cuts it down and rather than replace it with another tree, it fills the empty space left behind with cement (in the above case, however, it looks like they couldn't even bother with cutting the whole tree down). This, personal opinion only, is totally unacceptable and I'm not the only one who is frustrated about this.
The Arbor Day Foundation is a terrific organization that promotes tree plantings around the country and runs the Tree City USA campaign. When lobbying "The City" regarding the lack of trees in neighborhoods, they found the process set in place (in getting sidewalk trees replaced and properly maintained) to be so difficult and cumbersome (along with elected officials that seemed less than enthusiastic about this issue) that this organization threw in the towel and moved on. Sadly ironic for a city that prides it's self with the way it embraces "green" issues, don't you think?
As I walk around this town, I am noticing more and more spaces where trees once grew that are now filled in with cement. Trees are such an important component of our landscape. They moderate ground temperature (and global warming makes this issue quite critical), produce oxygen and help reduce carbon dioxide. Trees also add to the aesthetic beauty of the neighborhoods and parks where they are planted and provide, I believe, a sense of civility as well.
I am going to give a call to the San Francisco Department of Public Works Bureau of Urban Forestry and suggest you do, too.
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