Wishart Street drainage and trees works

Council have received approved funding through the Federal Government’s Local Road and Community Infrastructure Grant to complete essential drainage and tree replacement works in Wishart Street, Port Fairy.

The works have been instigated due to significant issues associated with damage to drainage, footpath and road assets caused primarily through invasive tree roots.

In addition, residents with trees close to their properties have reported respiratory and skin irritation issues with the seed pods hairs that the current Norfolk Island Hibiscus trees release. These seed pods also cause damage to roofing, guttering and impact on rainwater quality which some local residents use.

An independent arborist report completed in 2023 found the following:

• The trees present as mature specimens and all impact their growing environment.
• Their root structures impact severely both the road surfacing, and the hard formed drainage within their root zones.
• Generally for all trees, their health is similar. Canopy thinning and past pruning to manage invasive size applies to all specimens. As the trees further age the impacts unmanaged will continue to require maintenance.
• The trees also present structural heartwood decay in major branch and trunk scaffolds, with open wounds impacting structural integrity and vascular function.
• Street infrastructure impacts to hard drainage and road surfacing are significant and not repairable with the tree retained on site to an acceptable standard with suitable repair longevity.
• Impacts requiring rectification in the street scape are within the calculated structural root zone of the trees, and rectification will cause significant tree integrity loss, and health decline.
• As such it is principal across the seven trees, they have outlived their useful life within the current Wishart Street scape.

Drainage repairs are required due to the poor condition of the existing drainage systems including system collapse and blockages preventing critical stormwater flows. This has and will continue to be a flooding risk for properties and other assets in the street.

The condition of the footpath, kerb, channel and road surface has now also become a pedestrian and user risk issue. Council must comply with requirements under the Road Management Act to ensure that road and associated assets are safe for travel and do not constitute a trip, injury or accident hazard.

Council understands that any major change to streetscapes including the removal of mature trees is an important and at time emotive issue. This is not a response that Council has approached lightly.

Council however, needs to ensure that urban environments are safe for users, pedestrians and residents, and the degraded condition of Wishart Street drainage, and footpath and road surfaces has now reached a stage where works need to be undertaken. As reported in the arborists assessment, the nature of the civil works that must be undertaken, will damage the root zone of the trees if they are retained, which will further impact on tree health and integrity.