President outlines plans for campus tree recovery

tree worker med

An Enfield's Tree Service employee prunes limbs near the high-rise residence
halls. A vicious mid-December ice storm damaged or destroyed 40 percent of
the trees on the Northwest campus, a former nursery that was designated as
the Missouri Arboretum by the state Legislature in 1993.

In his semiannual address to faculty and staff Jan. 11 at the beginning of the spring trimester, Northwest President Dean L. Hubbard said the campus community’s emotional response to widespread tree damage caused by a severe December ice storm is best described as grief.

Before the storm, there were 1,300 trees growing on campus, from saplings to towering oaks and evergreens. Ice damage forced the removal of 79 trees, or 6 percent of the University stand. Another 430 trees had to be pruned, some so severely that they will probably not survive. Forty percent of the campus tree population suffered at least some damage.

Trees have always been an important part of both the Northwest landscape and its institutional culture, Hubbard noted. In 1993, the state Legislature designated the campus as the Missouri Arboretum, and tree-lined sidewalks and shady lawns have long been among the 102-year-old University’s most treasured hallmarks.

Hubbard said the wooded beauty of Thomas Gaunt’s former hilltop nursery was one reason the state chose it as the location for a new state normal school in the first place.

Looking across campus on Tuesday, Dec. 11, in the early morning hours after the storm produced a stew of emotions, the president said: alarm, sadness, respect for the power of nature and wonder at the eerie beauty of the ice-covered landscape. The crisis, however, left little time for reflection, and clean-up crews began work shortly after dawn.

Over the past month, Environmental Services personnel and contracted tree surgeons have spent long days clearing dangerous debris and removing trees too damaged to save. One of those, Hubbard said, was a 40-foot evergreen in the back yard of the presidential residence planted by first lady Aleta Hubbard.

Sustained applause followed Hubbard’s praise of University groundskeepers and other employees who came into work -- much of it cold and dangerous -- over the holiday break, despite having no heat or electricity in their homes. The storm downed lines and utility poles across the region, and thousands of local residents were without power, some for nearly a week.

In his remarks, Hubbard pledged that Northwest’s tree stand would not only recover but improve.

“This campus and this arboretum will be better than it ever was,” he said.

As work progressed, Hubbard received detailed briefings from Associate Director of Environmental Services Lezlee Johnson, a professional arborist, who kept him informed about both the cleanup and the initial stages of recovery planning.

The president said recovery will comprise six phases, two of which, the clearing of hazardous debris and removal of destroyed trees, are complete. Phase three -- stump removal -- will take place in February, when it is hoped frozen ground will minimize scarring from trucks and heavy machinery.

During phases four and five this spring workers will complete the removal of brush, limbs and branches then reseed grass and re-plant trees.

Hubbard said phase six will take place in April -- Arbor Month -- and will consist of a University-wide celebration, including the ceremonial planting of 79 trees to replace those killed by the storm.

An Arboretum Committee will be charged with planning and implementing the reforestation effort, and the Northwest Foundation is working on a fundraising campaign to help cover the cost. The scientific resources of the Department of Geology and Geography will be used to determine optimum species selection and placement. Alumni and others are being encouraged to sponsor individual trees with a gift of $300. Signs near sponsored trees will carry the donors’ names.

For an electronic photo album of images showing the storm’s aftermath, go to the Missouri Arboretum Web site at www.nwmissouri.edu/arboretum. The site also contains information provided by the Missouri Department of Conservation on how to prune and care for ice-damaged trees.

For information about Northwest’s commemorative tree program, go to www.nwmissouri.edu/arboretum/overview.htm or call Lezlee Johnson at 660.562.1473 or e-mail at trees@nwmissouri.edu.

For more information, please contact:

Anthony Brown,
News Bureau Manager
E-Mail: abrown@nwmissouri.edu
Phone: 660.562.1704
Fax: 660.562.1900

Northwest Missouri State University
219 Administration Building,
800 University Drive
Maryville, MO 64468

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