Your views: Talk of the town
February 23, 2009 

City’s Wrong to Cut Australian Pines

I heartily disagree with the recent decision by the Cocoa Beach City Commission to cut down the remnant Australian pines and other invasive plants on the publicly owned Thousand Island area.

These trees are over 60 feet tall and most provide protected roosts for numerous pelicans, sea eagles and many other birds.

To eradicate these trees would involve heavy construction equipment and/or plant poisons. The cost for this should be prohibitive in these lean times, but most of the financing is coming from state and federal governments, and other outside sources.

Groups of these trees are on private property throughout the city. Will round two of this purge be to force homeowners to rid their land of whatever plant that isn’t politically correct that week?

Cocoa Beach’s powers that be need to quit wasting other people’s money and leave the biggest trees in town alone.

Many citizens who find them beautiful and the birds that use them as a protected home will appreciate your inaction.

Gary Lupton
Cocoa Beach

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