When we submitted our Development Application for the PGV there were some early obstacles identified. One of them was a large 15+ metre high Bunya Pine. This tree had stood on the site for 50+ years, but was right in the middle of where we wanted to build the North West wing of the building. Council initially said it would need to stay, but this would have been the end of the project as between 35 and 50 rooms would have been lost from the development making it unviable. As it turned out many people were keen to see the end of the Bunya Pine because it has the unfortunate habit of dropping 10kg pine cones every year. Two independent arborists supported us and recommended its removal. While the Bunya is a native of the Queensland rainforest it has a problematic past in urban areas in Australia (and even New Zealand as the report on a problematic tree in the early 1900s suggests) due to the risk of injury to people and property. In fact both the University and the University Army Regiment were keen to see the Bunya removed due to safety issues.
Eventually, when the DA was approved the Randwick Council agreed to its removal conditional on its replacement with another mature tree (no, not a Bunya!). As it is, the PGV will add a number of significant new trees to the campus which will more than compensate for the loss of the Bunya. As well, we will be preserving the row of Box trees on Day Avenue that provide an attractive streetscape to the south. While it was sad to see the big tree fall, it was a justified act based on development and safety issues. And fall it did! I was present to see the tree go down and expected a slow lopping process. But no, as the photos show our demolishers used a large bulldozer that took just a few seconds to push it over, snapping the trunk close to the ground.
