Thousands sign online petition to prevent dozens of trees from being cut down on UBC campus

More than 18,000 people have signed an online petition to try to prevent dozens of trees on UBC's campus from being cut down to clear the way for two new buildings.

Former student Su Wang, who has lived at UBC since 2012, began the petition after seeing development billboards off Chancellor Boulevard along Westbrook Mall and Iona Drive on grounds used by an independent theological college at the university.

She says more than 35 trees are slated to be cut as part of the development, including mature western red cedars.

"The thought of them going down is extremely distressing and heartbreaking," said Wang, 27.

She argues that the trees' ecological value, including their ability to provide shade and habitat and to help keep cities cooler, is more important than new buildings on campus.

"When they remove these mature trees and replace them with seedlings we're really not recognizing the role of mature trees in this ecosystem and we're not recognizing how irreplaceable these trees are," Wang said.

UBC said in a statement that the theological college has applied to expand its facilities at Carey Hall with a new six-storey building on Walter Gage Road and the redevelopment of its existing administrative building on Wesbrook Boulevard with a four-storey building.

The new six-storey building will replace an existing parking lot and result in the removal of "some mature trees," UBC said.

It said plans for the new buildings aligns with the school's goal of increasing housing on campus, and also that a tree replacement policy exists.

"Staff have heard from the community that there is concern regarding loss of mature trees," said the statement. "When there are trees on a development site that cannot be retained, UBC has a one-for-one tree replacement policy — this policy applies to the Carey Hall site."

The school says 31 trees will need to be replaced and it will plant 68 total in conjunction with the proposed project. 

It also said that a mature forested area adjacent to the development would be protected, along with other nearby mature cedars.

UBC said as part of the development process, work is still being done to assess the health and age of the trees that would be removed.

Wang has not had an arborist assess the trees, but she believes the cedars, which she measured, are around 100 years old.