Another Tree Cut

A tree that has been chopped in a residential area.

In the name of development, so many trees are being cut down in the Greater Accra Region.  It's one of the things that I find very sad.  In many cases, the tree doesn't need to be cut.  This particular tree is one that I often saw people using a source of shade in the extreme heat.  At least this one wasn't cut from the stump.  Maybe the branches will grow back in time.  The worse cases are where I've seen old trees completely uprooted. Cut down.  For no good reason.  I had one women tell me she cut the tree in front of her house because she didn't want to rake the leaves anymore.

When visiting Nairobi last year, it's one of the distinctive differences I noticed.  The way that city has successfully incorporated greenery into its urban landscape is wonderful.  This, of course, is largely due to the country's strong support of environmental causes which are largely the result of the late Wangari Maathai, an environmental activist and Nobel Prize winner.

It saddened me to see this tree cut the way it was. Sometimes owners of property also cut trees because they don't want people loitering around their land.  With limited places to get shade in the region, it's not surprising that some would gather under one of the few places to grab some shade  Perhaps if more trees were left intact, or if the city was designed to incorporate more green, people wouldn't feel the need to gather under the few trees that are around.