If you have been paying attention, the islands’ landscapes are green, lush, and beautiful with a tropical setting of what is called by many “America’s Paradise.” We have a little over two months before the year ends. Since late last year, we have been getting rain almost every day falling somewhere in the Virgin Islands. This year’s rainfall is above average. The seasonal waterfalls on St. Croix are contentedly flowing toward the ocean.
With the falling rain, fast growth of trees occurs where branches hang over our roadways, creating a micro-climate environment. Rainwater contains more oxygen, which helps plants grow faster and creates a lush tropical environment. With rain, carbon dioxide is also brought down to Earth, which benefit plants. Once carbon dioxide reaches the soil, it releases important nutrients for plant growth to occur.
With that being said, there is also lots of tree trimming and cutting these days along our roadways and highways. The other day, I pulled off the road and talked to one gentleman who was cutting back bushes hanging over the roadway. What I discovered by talking to him, he has no guidelines whatsoever for how to prune trees properly. In fact, an 18thcentury historic watch house along the road was destroyed due to the equipment used to cut back trees.
The operator of the equipment didn’t know how valuable the historic watch house on the South Shore of St. Croix was to our history and culture. I don’t know if St. Thomas and St. John roadways have historical structures along them. But on St. Croix, there are several historical ruins, and other valuable historic structures along our roads that must be preserved whenever cutting bushes back or pruning trees along our roadways. I can’t stress enough how important trees are to our Earth’s ecosystem and to the human family.
Individuals who are cutting bushes and pruning trees back need to be trained to do a better job. Historic structures along the roads need to be tagged or flagged with markings so that they won’t be destroyed when trees are being pruned or bushes cut back. If we are talking about a tourist economy, our historic structures along our roads must be preserved. Nevertheless, we are a society that depends on electricity. We humans expect, even demand, reasonably priced, continuous electrical service.
Furthermore, we wouldn’t tolerate even momentary service interruptions that cause problems to our appliances, although WAPA goes off more than we can count on our fingers. Trees and electricity in the Virgin Islands often place the two in conflict with one another. Put bluntly, trees growing too close to overhead electric wires may threaten your safety and cause power outages.
Yet, the removal of interfering trees or branches by a utility company often creates controversy. I don’t know about St. Thomas and St. John when it comes to pruning trees or cutting back bushes, but on St. Croix, people are really upset about how trees are treated along our roadways. Trees have been cut down unnecessarily not just by WAPA but also by sub-contractors who got contracts from Public Works or other government agencies. And of course, the tree law is not being implemented as a guide in urban forestry management.
I would say this, there is no enforcement of the tree law in the Virgin Islands. According to the urban forestry coordinator, he has been getting lots of calls about trees on St. Croix being cut down or butchered like meat along our roadsides. Believe me, there is a disconnection between government agencies in relationship to tree protection in the Virgin Islands. WAPA is responsible for delivering quality power as safely and as in inexpensively as possible, and trees can present a major obstacle to meeting those responsibilities.
I would say while some tree conflicts are caused by broken tree branches on power lines, most tree problems are weather related, particularly during hurricanes, storms, or long periods of the wet season. Hurricanes or storms may cause trees to fall or their branches to bend or break onto electric wires. There are many solutions.
The right tree in the right place, is one. Planting trees on one side of the road is another. A good example of this is Route 75 on St. Croix that leads to the North Shore Road where very large mahogany trees are growing. However, many factors should be considered prior to planting trees along our highways and roadways. When planning, think about what type of trees to plant, and remember to look up and look down to determine where the tree should be placed in the ground in relationship to overhead and underground utility lines.
Power interruptions by trees and safety hazards can be avoided while preserving the health and beauty of our roadside trees. Proper pruning and, in some instances, removal and replanting the right tree in the right place can minimize tree-wire conflicts. Historic trees are not to be cut down, period. If pruning is needed, a certified arborist must be on the site to make sure the job is done correctly.
Another major impact on trees along our roadsides is underground lines. Roots of trees are cut indiscriminately — sometime half of the root system is chopped off. As a result, the trees can become hazards to the public, such as falling during strong winds, storms, hurricanes, long periods of rain, droughts, or they become more susceptible to insect and disease attacks and stress, which weakens their foundation.
Companies that are running underground lines must be aware of the root structure of trees. Tree roots and underground lines often co-exist without problems. However, underground lines need not be run close to tree roots if it can be avoided. An arborist’s presence is needed or someone with knowledge of tree growth and development as utility lines and pipes are being buried underground.
The bottom line is that poles, wires, and underground utility lines can co-exist with trees if we work together for the betterment of the people of these islands.
— Olasee Davis is a bush professor who lectures and writes about the culture, history, ecology and environment of the Virgin Islands when he is not leading hiking tours of the wild places and spaces of St. Croix and beyond.
