Pulling down trees to put up a Portaloo

I look at the council’s planning application pages every now and then, as it only takes a couple of minutes to check what’s going on.

York Racecourse have submitted an application to fell a mature tree … so they can put up Portaloos.

Apparently there’s been a serious toileting issue for people on the Champagne Lawn. It has led to ‘frustration, anger and disturbance’. Basically, they need more toilets for the drunk people to find more easily, and want to remove a mature tree so they can put up a Portaloo or two.

I don’t know what to say really …

It may go through unchallenged. Most do. Because no one comments.

So, another tree felled.

Let’s plant a few small saplings to replace it, to ease our conscience, as York Racecourse suggest?

But they’ll be in the way of future developments and plans, and the next generation will no doubt see them as another ‘green thing in the way’, and chop them down, just as they’re getting to a decent size.

I hope everyone’s had a look at the Tree Watch pages. My attempt to do something positive, but a waste of time. I’ve stopped adding details of individual applications to fell trees – few people looked, no one’s bothered perhaps. Perhaps everyone’s leaving it to the local authority to decide what’s best?

The more general informative pages are still there, and if anyone else out there is concerned, and knows more than I do, or has information to share, please comment or contact me.

Maybe someone else in York thinks a mature tree is more important than a couple more Portaloos on the racecourse?