Public opposes Hanoi’s tree-cutting project The plan to chop down and replace 6,700 trees on 190 streets of Hanoi, at the cost of more than VND73 billion ($3 million), faces public a backlash. The project has already kicked off. In the last few days, hundreds of trees on Nguyen Chi Thanh Road have been cut down, to be replaced by the new ones. Under the pressure of public opinion, Chairman Nguyen The Thao of the Hanoi City People's Committee on Wednesday asked the Department of Construction to review the project. Le Van Duc, Director of the Department of Construction, said the project was approved by the municipal authorities and Nguyen Chi Thanh was chosen as the first place for implementation. "Nguyen Chi Thanh Street has 381 shade trees of 15 species. Of them, there are up to 228 milky flower trees, 81 Acacia trees, and the rest belonging to 13 different species. Due to the lack of uniformity, the Department of Construction proposed replacing these trees with vang tam trees and the Hanoi People’s Committee approved," he said. Duc added that trees on other roads like Lang Ha, Giang Vo, Tran Nhan Tong, Ngo Thi Nham, Tran Hung Dao will be replaced. "All must be completed in the first quarter of this year," he said. According to the Hanoi Department of Construction, the agency conducted a survey of 30,000 trees on 200 streets in 10 districts and decided to replace 6,700 trees on 190 streets because the trees are unsuited for the urban environment or are dying. The project will be completed this year at a cost of over VND73 billion ($3.4 million). More than 100 species of trees are available on more than 500 of Hanoi’s streets, including 25 species in large numbers. There are up to 50,000 giant crape-myrtle, flamboyant, mahogany, cassod and dracontomelon trees. They are considered typical trees of Hanoi. Crape-myrtle trees are very common on old streets but their roots are hollow, causing damage to underground works and sidewalks. And the trees can easily collapse in storms. After reading the 23-page plan of the Department of Construction, architect Tran Huy Anh, a member of the Vietnam Association of Architects, said the scheme is unprofessional and very sketchy. "The project affecting such a large community should have a good record. How many trees can we plant in a year and how many years will it take for them to create shade?" he said. Anh said the scheme must have a map of trees and a tree management record, and before the plan is carried out, these documents should be made public. “This is a project so it must be implemented in a strict procedure. This is a mandatory process," Anh said. Meanwhile, researcher of Hanoi culture Giang Quan said chopping thousands of trees in Hanoi was a big waste because many trees are very big, with wide shade. Meanwhile, Hanoi lacks trees. "The information has not been adequately provided so that people understand that the city had a project, a campaign to cut down more than 6,700 trees, while the fact is that the old and ill trees and those of the inappropriate varieties will be gradually replaced by new ones," said the Chair of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen The Thao at the monthly meeting of the city’s leaders on Thursday, March 19. Thao then asked the Department of Construction to stop the project. Trees on Le Duan and Nguyen Chi Thanh Road were chopped down on March 18:                 Photo: NLD/LD/Zing/VNN Le Ha, VNN