Eight people were arrested today during protests at a site of a West Auckland development as trees were removed.
Arborist Zane Wedding, who had slept in one of the trees for more than 60 nights continuously last year, was arrested after climbing a fence that blocked the Avondale site from the group.
He told 1 NEWS before his arrest that today marked “one of the saddest days of my life”.
The protestors in Avondale tried to jump fences to protect the native trees. (Source: Other)
“Losing these trees ... some of the trees here are the rarest of their kind within Tamaki Makaurau,” Wedding said.
“To see that taken away and to see the police assist in that, it just breaks my heart.”
But, he said, it wouldn’t have gotten so bad had police kept lines of communication with the community, as they had done in the past.
Arborist Zane Wedding says police have blindsided protestors after showing up without telling them. (Source: Other)
“This morning they [police] showed up, no lines of communication. Moved against the community and assisted in decimating a taonga,” he said.
“We could have organised something so that it wasn’t so volatile.”
Wedding said developers had “snuck in” and were only “waiting us out” to finally cut the trees.
Native trees on the section on the corner of Canal Road and Wairau Avenue in Avondale are set to come down, with a developer planning on building houses in their place.
A community group is opposing the removal of native trees in West Auckland for a housing development. (Source: Other)
There have been ongoing protests from those opposing their removal. Protestors today were attempting to save the remaining 23 native trees on the site.
As contractors with diggers and chainsaws started working today, a crowd gathered, jeering police, security and workers.
Police said the eight people that were arrested would appear in court at a later stage.
The arrests were made in relation to "trespass and obstruction", a spokesperson said.
"Our role is to ensure the property owner can exercise their rights while also ensuring the protestors are able to exercise their rights to protest peacefully.
"We respect any person’s right to protest in public spaces. Unfortunately some of those present have chosen to try and force their way onto the property."
There have been ugly scenes in Avondale as protestors try to prevent to removal of a stand of native trees. (Source: Other)
The spokesperson said police have since left the site after work had finished, but will be in the area in the evening to "respond to any issues that may arise".
The Resource Management Act was modified in 2012 so that blanket protections of trees in urban areas no longer apply.
That means any tree on private property can be removed legally, regardless of its age or size.
Auckland Council was in the process of investigating a land exchange that would have stopped the removal of the trees last year. But, the developer didn't wish to swap their site for the smaller, council-owned Canal Reserve nearby.
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