{"id":239031,"date":"2021-05-16T10:49:43","date_gmt":"2021-05-16T14:49:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/?p=239031"},"modified":"2021-05-16T10:49:43","modified_gmt":"2021-05-16T14:49:43","slug":"whos-going-to-stick-their-necks-out-for-the-trees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/cuba\/whos-going-to-stick-their-necks-out-for-the-trees\/","title":{"rendered":"Who\u2019s going to stick their necks out for the trees?"},"content":{"rendered":"

For some time now, complaints about the incorrect management of urban trees in Cuba have been frequent in the networks, especially in areas of the country\u2019s capital, <\/span>setting off alarms<\/span><\/a> in various state media, where texts have been published and television programs have been dedicated to reporting, basically, about the current actions of the institutions in charge of cutting down and pruning trees in the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

Several of the <\/span>complaints from citizens<\/span><\/a> are concentrated in public groups on Facebook, created from the growing demands of Internet users about the apparently excessive felling and pruning of trees, especially in the municipality of Plaza de la Revoluci\u00f3n.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to <\/span>statements by the authorities<\/span><\/a> in charge of these activities, these actions are normal at this time of year, prior to the hurricane season that is approaching as of June 1, although another group of specialists in environmental issues point out that such actions should not be undertaken at this time of year, as it affects many species.<\/span><\/p>\n

They also specify that the increase in these activities responds to accumulated statements by the population, afflicted with the trees\u2019 adverse consequences where they live.<\/span><\/p>\n

More than a hundred complaints<\/span><\/a> (many of these in areas of El Vedado) have been collected in the last two months by the <\/span>Habana Verde Facebook group<\/span><\/a>, one of the most active where the population is also encouraged to take care of the forest heritage of the city, as well as educating people on environmental issues related to urban landscaping and its benefits for society.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Tree
Tree felled on 15th street, denounced by the Habana Verde Facebook group. Photo: Yoel Rodr\u00edguez<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe idea is to make the problem visible and draw attention to it both from citizens and from the competent authorities. It is essential to educate the population and raise awareness about the importance of urban trees for life in cities, beyond the conflicts that they could bring to certain structures in the city,\u201d says Alexandra Lleonart, one of the group\u2019s administrators and creator of the initiative.<\/span><\/p>\n

This problem <\/span>is not new<\/span><\/a>, although now it has greater visibility, as Liliana N\u00fa\u00f1ez, president of the Antonio N\u00fa\u00f1ez Jim\u00e9nez Nature and Man Foundation (FANJ), told us: \u201cThis felling is an old and accumulated problem that fortunately many people are seeing and it is necessary to take advantage of it to find a solution. In this the population has a lot to contribute.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

For his part, adds botanist Roberto P\u00e9rez Rivero, who works together with the FANJ, \u201cin the midst of an extreme need to plant thousands of trees in the capital, which Proarbolado tried to promote for the city\u2019s 500th Anniversary, what people see are more acts of felling, vandalism and destructive pruning, which added to the warnings of the specialists has led to the discontent and the protest by those who love trees and understand their multiple benefits.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The good news is that the population\u2019s interest in avoiding these evils has attracted the attention of the country\u2019s government, judging by the spaces that have been dedicated in various media to the issue of trees.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, the measures or actions that will be carried out to stop the indiscriminate and poorly executed felling and pruning by the corresponding authorities, who recognize the wrong actions in these tasks, are still to be seen. Antonio Guzm\u00e1n Torres, head of the Department of Development, Forest Management, Protected Areas and Wildlife of the <\/span>Ministry of Agriculture (MINAG)<\/span><\/a>, acknowledged on the Mesa Redonda television space that \u201cunfortunately no progress has been made in rectifying the value of fines and violations against trees.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n