The grand oak trees draped in Spanish moss lining several Lowcountry roadways are shielded from cutting by several layers of municipal protections. But a proposal that weakens those restrictions that was rejected by Charleston County Council on Nov. 30 is set to resurface later this month. Environmentalists remain worried by the proposal.
The initial proposal would have given the county’s Public Works Department an exemption from the county’s rules governing tree removal and planning approval processes. It was, however, sent back to the county Planning Commission for some amendments, including limited site plan reviews. It will be brought before the council again on Dec. 21.
Some say the amendments don’t change the message.
“I’m not sure it matters,” said county council member Larry Kobrovsky. “I just want to end it outright, nothing needs to be changed. … I have seen too much of what makes me love living here be changed or removed, and I think I speak for many of us when I say I’ll do whatever I can to preserve what makes this place special and unique, these things that need to be treasured and revered.”
County council member Jenny Honeycutt said the proposal was not intended to undermine the county’s Board of Zoning Appeals, which currently governs tree-cutting or road and drainage projects.
“We’re helping streamline the process,” she said at the Nov. 30 council meeting. “To create a better public process, we’re sending it back to the planning commission again with these revisions so that the public has the opportunity to [provide] input.”
Culture and climate
Charleston’s grand oaks have almost become as synonymous with the Lowcountry as its salt marshes, said Emma Berry, the Coastal Conservation League’s communities and transportation project manager.
“When we’re thinking about the Lowcountry, and Charleston in particular, and the character it has, a lot of that is the salt marshes, but also the grand trees,” she said. “All of these are really important facets to Charleston and its culture. We see a lot of these trees along our roads, and a lot of people move here in part because of the beauty and character of these areas and corridors.”
Kobrovsky agrees.
“We lose a little bit every day,” he said. “I think I speak for most people that live here when I say what we love most and what makes the Lowcountry the Lowcountry is eroding — whether it be from development or something else. … The public needs to speak out, or this will just be one more thing put on a path for us to lose.”
But the trees offer more than just natural beauty, Berry said.
“The trees are really crucial from an environmental standpoint,” she said. “Mature trees can soak up between 4,000 and 11,000 gallons of water per year, and that’s huge. Council says trees shouldn’t get in the way of drainage projects, but that’s totally backwards — if we had more trees, maybe we wouldn’t have so many drainage problems.
“And that’s not to mention, of course, the native wildlife that relies on the tree canopies as well,” she added. “Live oaks specifically have a wide range of species dependent on them for survival.”
Kobrovsky said the proposal being sent back to the planning commission, even if only for a couple weeks, gives the public a chance to speak out.
“It’s not a done deal yet,” Kobrovsky explained. “I hope people come out and let their voices be heard on this issue. It will be a close vote. If people on the council feel that they can get away with this, they will.
“People often wonder how things change so much — how things are always so overdeveloped and concreted over — this is how it happens,” he added. “This is just one such attempt. If people love our trees and our canopies and our natural landscape … I don’t feel I can allow this to happen.”
The Charleston County Planning Commission is set to meet at 2 p.m. Dec. 11 at the North Charleston Public Services Building at 4045 Bridge View Drive. The next council meeting is on Dec. 21.
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