Meredith trees to get the chop

THE Golden Plains Shire will remove four aged trees at Meredith before Christmas Day, citing community safety reasons.

The Monterey cypress trees at 76 McLeod Street were deemed dead or at risk of limb failure by a municipal arboriculture specialist.

A trunk from a tree that had previously collapsed will also be removed from the site as part of the job.

The removals will begin next Monday, 20 December and wrap up by Friday, with traffic control measures in place along McLeod Street for the duration of the works.

The trees will then be repurposed into mulch, which the Shire said would be available to residents for free at the Meredith Cricket and Recreation Reserve.

Free firewood can also be collected from the removal site each day during the week of works from 4pm.

The job follows similar action taken in Inverleigh in late October to remove six trees at risk of dropping limbs.

Also Monterey cypresses, four trees were removed on the Hamilton Highway inbound and another two were taken from the Inverleigh Public Camping Reserve.

A media statement released by the municipality noted a tree succession plan would be prepared next year for the Meredith area.

Community consultation will also be sought on the strategy next year.

The same plan is currently underway for Inverleigh, outlining a 10-year management strategy for ageing, new and significant trees, with public feedback closed earlier this month.

To view a map of the location of next week’s works, visit goldenplains.vic.gov.au/meredithtrees.