As Seattle finalizes comprehensive plan, some ask - who will speak for the trees?

After a few marathon public comment sessions last week, the Seattle City Council is considering the final version of a comprehensive plan.

This is the document that dictates where and how the city will grow over the next two decades. 

Over the last week, balancing tree canopy with growth emerged as one of the most controversial issues in the plan. 

And there’s a history here:

In 2023, Mayor Harrell and the Seattle City Council passed a so-called tree protection ordinance that would limit the amount of trees developers could cut down while building new housing. 

But, according to tree-canopy advocates, two years since the law went into effect tree-cutting has only increased. 

Just in August an average of 73 trees were being cut down each week. 

So what went wrong? Or – is the law working exactly as intended? 

Guest:

• Robert McClure is a journalist and co-founder of InvestigateWest

Related stories:

• Developers’ tree-cutting pace surges under contested Seattle tree protection ordinance - InvestigateWest
• Seattle claims to ‘protect’ hundreds of trees that were never threatened - InvestigateWest

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