As forecast in the previous entry, the builders of Airport Link have succeeded in
removing the ancient Flindersia tree in Woooloowin that gave shelter and pleasure to
residents and wildlife for 200 years - until it stood in the way of the 20th century
definition of progress, the motor vehicle.

Ignoring protests from local residents, treeloppers moved in yesterday and the iconic tree
was killed and chopped up in just eight hours.

And the cost to the Company awarded the contract to construct the $5,000 million tunnel project?
A mere $100,000 to ameliorate the conscience of the Lord Mayor.
Is that all a tree that was standing before foreign settlers first came to this land, is worth?
How do you put a price on such an asset that is a part of our heritage?
Is it officially the value of the timber that can be sold to the highest bidder?
Or is it the minimum price that the State and the Council can set without causing the politicians too much aggravation?
And why was the payment made to Council to swell its coffers, instead of the traditional owners of
the land?

As usually occurs whenever an irreplaceable natural asset is destroyed to make way for new roads
or buildings deemed "essential", an elaborate PR exercise was developed to assure the
community that -
a. the tree was sick and could never be relocated or saved;
b. seedlings from the tree would be used to plant more and similar trees;
c. all other ways to design the tunnel construction to leave the tree in place were unsuccessful;
d. the wildlife that lived in the tree had been relocated;
and of course the standard justification -
e. it had to be removed for the greater good, i.e. the huge and enduring benefit to some drivers
of getting to the airport about 8 minutes faster.

We've seen it all before. Whether it is an ancient tree, or a river like the Mary, or a cultural icon
like Cloudland, or a historical gem like Yungaba, the real value of these treasures is never
realised until it is too late and they are no more than a wonderful memory for those lucky enough to have experienced and enjoyed them.

And while we allow these crimes against our environment to continue to occur, we still say that we are an advanced and civilised society.