Penang Botanic Gardens curator Saw Leng Guan told FMT trees with roots stifled by concrete were time bombs that could cause more deaths.
Yesterday, on Perak Road here, a giant raintree crushed the roof of a car after it uprooted during a downpour. The 53-year-old driver was killed.
Later, the tree that fell was revealed to have been replanted three years ago to make way for a road expansion project.
Saw said old and large trees, ideally, should never be transplanted or relocated elsewhere but must be conserved for posterity.
“Or else, we will see time bombs and the recurrence of incidents like the one on Perak Road,” he said. “Tree roots are alive and must have the necessary conditions for healthy growth.”
Saw complained that the authorities did not consult “people who know about trees” before transplanting them.
He said it was best to leave old and large trees alone and focus on coming up with policies to protect them.
Saw said based on the pictures of the uprooted tree, it appeared that the roots had been cut or had the roots trimmed down.
“It had such a small root ball for such a huge tree, it is a wonder how they allowed it to be transplanted,” he said.
“A huge tree like this must have its support of spreading roots. When you have road expansion, you cannot just chainsaw away the support system of the tree. It may be fine for a short while but the rot will set in. The roots will not be able to support the tree’s weight and it will topple.
“We need policies to protect these trees. Break up all pavements. Let’s just have grass,” he said.
Sahabat Alam Malaysia president Meenakshi Raman called for an inquiry into the Perak Road incident.
She said the incident should be a reminder for local councils to stop cutting trees and to carry out a thorough inspection of old trees so that safety measures could be taken.
Consumers’ Association of Penang president Mohideen Abdul Kader said the city council should be carrying out periodic checks on all old trees and keep a profile of each tree in its database.
“If the tree was transplanted, then it ought to be checked even more frequently,” he said. “There are ways to keep older trees healthy. You can carry out surgery on their roots to keep them strong.”
Activist Lim Mah Hui of Penang Forum said it was time to look at trees as an important asset.
“They serve an important ecological function in reducing global warming,” he said.
Lawyer Ong Yu Shin said the next of kin of the driver killed yesterday could raise a case of negligence and sue the city council, the consultant arborist and the state government or the Public Works Department.