Residents of Bayside and Sutton Park in north Dublin have won a reprieve for more than 70 mature roadside trees on their housing estates that were due to be felled by Fingal County Council.
A meeting of the council's Malahide-Howth area committee yesterday decided to defer any tree-felling until its next meeting in February, pending a further examination of the trees by the paving department.
Council officials had claimed that the 77 trees earmarked for felling, which include cherry, whitebeam and sycamore, were either decayed, blocking light, breaking up footpaths or interfering with lamp standards.
But yesterday the paving department agreed to consider a proposal by Cllr David Healy (Green Party) that a more flexible surface than concrete should be used for footpaths, at least in the vicinity of tree trunks.
He said rubberised pavements have been used in more than 60 US cities as a way of solving the problem of trees breaking up footpaths. The rubber comes from recycled tyres.
John Haughton, chairman of the Bayside Tree Preservation Association, welcomed the reprieve, which came after members of the group lobbied councillors.
