Committee to study town-wide tree preservation

A new Lincoln Tree Preservation Study Group has been formed to address tree protection and preservation, and they want survey input from residents.

The group was created amid concern that the town’s current bylaws and regulations have fewer protections for trees than our neighboring towns, as outlined with information and links in this handout and information table at the recent State of the Town Meeting. “While trees in the public right of way and in wetlands and buffer zones have some protections, other trees in Lincoln have virtually none,” the handout notes — a shortcoming for a town that prides itself on its rural and agricultural character.

Members launched this survey to learn what issues relating to Lincoln’s trees are of interest and/or concern to residents, and they plan educational events starting in early 2025.

In recent weeks, several large trees along roadways close to power lines have been cut down by Eversource in a project that was announced last spring. Those trees were identified in a list from the Department of Public Works and highlighted with tape and explanatory tags. “We spent a lot of time in the public hearing process and then meeting with residents on specific trees they wanted to talk about,” said Tree Warden Ken Bassett, adding that “quite a few” were spared.

Among the trees that have already fallen to the chainsaw are aged Norway maples in Pierce Park close to Weston Road. In the past, “there have been pretty significant power outages from tress coming down into the road” in that area, and the Conservation Department has been planting new ones that are farther away from the road.

Bassett also noted that many of the town’s ash trees have been killed by the emerald ash borer and also need to come down if they endanger power lines.