Chicago-area environmental activists seek to protect region’s trees

Standing before the Geneva City Council, June Maher held up an edited version of the city’s logo. Instead of one with a prominent tree in the middle, it contained a stump.

She called the west suburb, “Stump City USA,” saying that city and county leaders allowed trees that are hundreds of years old to be cut down through inaction.

“In my heart of hearts, I do feel that leadership could have prevented this,” she said at the September meeting. “I’m very disappointed in the City Council and administration for not stepping up and doing the things that they claim to honor in their Arbor Day proclamations and their Tree City USA and all that … hypocrisy.”

For years, Maher and a group of activists have tried to stop the removal of bur oak trees at a proposed industrial park development in Kane County near Geneva, contacting local elected officials, starting a petition and even climbing on machinery. They say almost all of the historic trees were cut down in the two weeks…