Long Beach City College will remove six trees at LAC due to bad health and potential safety hazards on Friday and Saturday.
LBCC brought in a certified arborist to review the trees and decided that they should be removed.
Horticulture professor Jorge Ochoa disagrees with the decision.
With the renovation of the P building at LAC the six trees will be cut down.
The Deputy Director of Facilities Rentals & Grounds, Sean Rivell, at LBCC says that the trees will be replaced within six months.
In specifics, two Italian Stone Pine trees near the bus stop, three Carob trees south of the P building, and one European Olive tree north of the P building will be removed.
One Brazilian Peppertree in front of the entrance of the P building will be kept which is also a memoriam to Beverly O’Neill.
LBCC wants to add more trees on both campuses.
“Diversity in trees is what’s important. There are many different trees which you could add to benefit PCC,” said Ochoa.
Sean Rivell inspects the trees every couple months, and his number one concern with the trees is safety. “My number one priority with the trees is safety. I am a tree lover but if the trees have any potential safety hazards, it’s my job to deal with it,” said Rivell.
A certified arborist, Dillon Reynolds, wrote a report on the trees that he believed what was wrong with the trees.
Reynolds spoke about the three Carob trees.
“From visual examination of the tree and its current status, it appears that the tree has suffered a stem failure,” said Reynolds.
The three Carob trees that are scheduled to be removed, “Shouldn’t be removed!” said Ochoa.
Ochoa believes that the three Carob Trees shouldn’t be removed because they are still in good condition. He also believes that the Brazilian Peppertree that is being kept is the tree that should be removed.
Reynolds had no comment when asked what he thinks about Ochoa’s disagreement on the trees.
With the new Magnolia trees which were planted for the renovation of the P building, about 24 have to be planted to match the same amount of benefits that 1 Carob tree does.
Other damage has been done to the trees such as the implementation of new sidewalks. At PCC, multiple trees had to be cut down for renovations.
Trees that are being removed will be chipped down and reused for LAC.