A Brighton, England, landowner has been fined £4,000 after damaging the roots of two protected sycamore trees so severely that they had to be cut down — all to make room for a more profitable land arrangement.
According to the Brighton and Hove News, Geoffrey Everdon, the freeholder behind the excavation work performed, never showed up to court. But his actions spoke volumes.
In leveling the land to sublet more space, Everdon severed the structural roots of both trees, which had been protected under a Tree Preservation Order since 1976. After repeated warnings and missed deadlines, Brighton and Hove City Council issued a Dangerous Tree Notice, and both trees were felled in June 2023.
"The root severance of both trees was so severe that they had become a danger to property and the public highway," said council prosecutor Helen Wilson, according to the Brighton and Hove News.
The city valued the trees at over £10,000 each based on the Helliwell system — a method for calculating the civic and environmental worth of trees.
"The work had broken numerous roots including structural roots," Wilson added.
This kind of incident may seem isolated, but it represents a larger, unsettling pattern: mature trees being treated as obstacles to profit rather than assets to the community.
Urban trees do more than line our streets. They absorb carbon, cool neighborhoods, support wildlife, and help manage stormwater. Once they're gone, they're not easily replaced.
And while the fine may seem steep, many online feel it wasn't enough.
"He probably considers £4k a small price to pay," one commenter wrote. "I am surprised the Council does not see this as an opportunity to fine such environmental vandals a great deal more since BHCC keeps pleading poverty and closing our Libraries."
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Definitely 👍 "He should have had his lease removed from him," another said. "Nothing more leachy than subletting. He's easy to spot, always up and down there on a mobility scooter."
When someone cuts corners for personal gain, it's the public — and the planet — that pays the price.
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