Greek Australian Steven Karakitsos has saved a 120-year-old Moreton Bay fig tree in the Frankston area from being cut down. The tree, which is located on a property on Cranbourne Road, was destined to be cut down last Tuesday because the owner of the property says the roots have interfered with the foundations of their home.
However, in 2003, the Frankston City Council paid $120,000 to save this historic tree from being felled, however, due to the close proximity to the property the council said that a permit was not required to fell the tree. The council, alongside with Mr Karakitsos, have been trying to work with the owner of the property to find another solution so they can save the tree. One such solution is to trim the roots to ensure they don’t interfere with the property’s foundations.
“The revived threat of removing the Moreton Bay fig is not so much a slap in the face, as a decisive blow in the head for environmental integrity, drawing attention to the often-fickle nature and lip service of policy making in the service of protecting our natural heritage,” Mr Karakitsos told Neos Kosmos.
Mr Karakitsos brought the plight of the tree to the attention of Frankston councillors who were involved with saving the tree several years ago, which instigated an application to Heritage Victoria to list the tree on its Victorian Heritage Register, providing automatic protection until a final decision is made. When asked about the importance of saving natural heritage, Mr Karakitsos relayed a quote by Plato which says: “One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors”.
“People must be more actively engaged in activism which, more often than not, forms an integral part of informing the political process. Demonstrations do not necessarily have to be violent, as proven by the efforts to save the historic Frankston tree. “We’ve already lost far too much of our natural, cultural and indigenous heritage of which there’s not much left in suburbia which is, unfortunately, at the beck and call of shortsighted progress and development,” he said.
“A more active stance is absolutely necessary when it comes to issues placing such factors at threat. Too many people take for granted what we have and that we are powerless in the face of the authorities and legislation to make a real difference, but people power has worked in the past and is probably one of the most cogent forces in creating lasting change. One positive thing is that you often don’t have to have huge numbers to garner support for attacking certain issues in order to implement change.”
