El Paso City's Management Must Value Trees More

Italian Stone Pine in memory of Margaret H. Tolbert planted at Newman Park and donated by the office of Rep. Susie Byrd as part
of the Memorial Tree program of El Paso.

My friend, Marshall Carter-Tripp (the former Director of UTEP's Centennial Museum) raised again the issue of the need for more trees in El Paso.  To make that happen we need a city management which really values trees and doesn't just use Tree City USA as public relations window dressing.


Here's, what Marshall wrote to me in an email:

"I found a printed brochure from the time I moved back here in 2003 about the Memorial Tree program. I donated money for a friend from far away who was dying, to honor her with a tree. 

"After some searching I found something about this on the parks section of the city website.  Not easy to find...when was the last time there was any publicity about this?  EP should be planting trees like crazy...how many trees were planted under this program?  How about a TREES FOR DIPLOMAS program where every high school grad or university or medical school grad is honored with a tree? How much nicer would EP be with more trees???"

I responded to her and copied our Urban Forester, Oscar Mestas, Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Chairman, Dave Turner (also a Master Naturalist), Jennifer Barr, a PRAB member and current Tree Sub-Committee Chairwoman and Tracy Novak our acting Parks and Recreation Department Director. Here's what I wrote:

"El Paso does need more trees.  Lots more trees.  The irony is that we could actually save water by having more native or adapted trees by cooling our environment and using trees as part of an overall stormwater strategy.  El Paso was made a Tree City USA - mere window dressing for PR by the current administration in my humble opinion.  That administration has shown no real value of trees.  Under the previous Parks and Rec director, the tree board continued to be made impotent and obsolete.  When I chaired that sub-committee, it was always a battle just to hold a meeting.  However, those of us who know the importance of trees should be pounding the table and getting that Committee revitalized and prominent again.  

"We are blessed with great experts in the City on trees and landscaping - Oscar and Jennifer are at the top of the list.  So, I join you in whatever effort we can make to do more for trees in El Paso.

"By the way, check out www.wtufc.org.  I'm on that Board and love that organization.

Jim

"P.S. BTW the last time that I saw a drawing for the renovated Plaza Park, there were going to be palms.  PRAB never had follow up about that remodeling, because the previous director and her boss did not want any more criticism of their plans.  One can only hope that those dinosaurian monocots will be replaced by actual native trees but I'm skeptical and cynical and all of that."