A three-hundred-year-old white quebracho tree, located on the side of Padre Luchesse avenue, is the protagonist of an environmental, political, and legal dispute in the town of Villa Allende in Córdoba.
Last week, the Court of First Instance in Civil and Commercial Matters of Córdoba ordered to halt any operation of tree extraction, which was going to be removed due to the widening works of the road.
Since the works were announced -at the end of last year- citizens mobilized in defense of this ancient white quebracho tree. According to specialists, it is around 300 years old. Solidarity hugs around the tree took place; environmentalists and neighbors presented technical proposals to the Córdoba legislature and the Deliberative Council. They also knocked on the doors of provincial and national Environment authorities, but the extraction process continued.
Avenue expansion threatens tree’s survival
The decision of the municipality of Villa Allende and Caminos de las Sierra, the concessionaire of the access roads to Córdoba, was to move the tree 30 meters from its original location, so it does not interrupt the lane expansion project.
However, the technical study commissioned to analyze the case -carried out by agronomists Pedro Lubrano and Adrián Ricchini- warned that, although transplanting this quebracho (10 meters high) was feasible, the chances of survival are less than 20%.
For neighbors and environmentalists, the last resort was judicial intervention. “It is important that the Justice has ruled in favor because it implies that there is a legitimate claim to be addressed,” mentions the legislator of the MST in the Left Front, Luciana Echevarría, who filed a precautionary measure within the framework of an environmental protection petition to stop the removal.
Echevarría states that this tree is a unique specimen, which has witnessed the history of Villa Allende and Córdoba. But, in addition to its historical and social value, there is an ecological cause to defend. “It is much more than a tree. This quebracho is put at stake as a symbol of the importance of trees and forests in our province,” she says.
Environmental dispute to save the quebracho
At the beginning of the month, legislator Brenda Austin presented a project to declare the white quebracho tree on Luchesse avenue as a natural monument. This initiative is based on law 6,964 of Protected Areas.
According to studies from the National University of Córdoba, in this province, only 3% of native forest remains in good conservation status. The main threat to the white quebracho species was the indiscriminate logging for its wood use. The specimen resting on Luchesse avenue is a survivor of the native forest.
“Beyond the specific value of this quebracho, it is a symbol of the common goods that we need to protect from policies that destroy everything in their path in the name of progress,” Echevarría remarks.
For this Monday, May 26th, the Court has summoned an hearing to the plaintiff parties (legislator and neighbors) and representatives of Caminos de la Sierra and the local municipality. The defenders’ proposal is for the tree to remain and for the roadwork to be adapted with a roundabout or deviation from the route.
