As of: March 16, 2024, 12:00 p.m
By: Stefanie Zipfer
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It once stood there, the linden tree.
Günther Frei from Dachau sees himself as a “victim of the tree protection regulations”.
In the eyes of the city, however, he is an environmental offender who cut down a tree worthy of protection without permission.
© Norbert Habschied
If a protected tree is felled without permission, the Tree Protection Ordinance provides for high fines.
This could cost someone from Dachau dearly.
Dachau – Günther Frei from Dachau grew up with “his” lime tree, as he says.
He must have been ten years old when a linden tree began to grow on the fence of his parents' property in Mitterndorf.
As the boy grew, so did the tree.
But 50 years later, more precisely in February 2023, the linden tree showed the first signs of age.
During the regular cutting, Frei, who was a member of the Mitterndorf-Udlding forest cooperative for 35 years, noticed dark spots in the wood.
With a heavy heart, he decided to cut down the tree.
Because: “What would have been the alternative?
That the rotten tree will eventually fall onto the street?
Then I would be liable!”
In his own words, Frei did not know that there was already a tree protection ordinance in place at that time.
In autumn 2022, the city brought a tree protection ordinance into force with a narrow vote.
In the Frei household, the wife was the newspaper reader.
But the wife was already seriously ill.
“It was a difficult time for all of us.” The regulation, says Günther Frei, “just passed me by.”
Ignorance of tree protection regulations results in a fine
But when he received the first letter from the city building authority a few weeks after he sawed down his lime tree, Frei became acquainted with the regulations.
This stipulates that a protected tree may only be felled if the city has been notified of this and the city has approved the felling.
Anyone who falls without permission can expect fines of between 1,500 euros and 4,000 euros, depending on the size of the tree.
In the case of Günther Frei, this meant that he had to pay a fine, including fees and expenses, amounting to 1,526.60 euros because - as the urban green and environment department determined - he had “cut down a lime tree on his property without the necessary permission then completely eliminated”.
(By the way: Everything from the region is now also available in our regular Dachau newsletter.)
And that wasn't all: Because Frei had failed to file an objection against the fine notice in a timely manner, which made the notice legally binding and he still made no move to pay, the city promptly made him pay a further 500 euros - "forced fine “, as the city letter said.
Frei is stunned by this: “I missed the deadline by exactly two days because my wife was dying at the time.
I had other worries!”
The city planning department emphasizes that it has discretion in such questions.
“We are not inhumans,” says head of office Moritz Reinhold.
In fact, Günther Frei was granted an extension of the payment deadline after he described the family problem.
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Clearly visible: the discoloration in the middle.
© Private
City of Dachau remains tough: No exceptions when it comes to tree felling
But Reinhold remains firm on the matter: “According to paragraph 6, paragraph 2, of the Tree Protection Ordinance, felling or pruning is only permitted without prior approval if this measure serves to eliminate imminent dangers.” This measure must then be reported to the city of Dachau.
However, people in the town hall did not want to recognize that Günther Frei's tree was actually in danger and that the linden tree was in acute danger of falling over.
There were “no sufficient reasons for an emergency apparent,” according to a corresponding letter from the specialist office to the Mitterndorf resident.
Yes, according to the tree examiners, a “discoloration” could be seen in the middle of the tree, but it “occupied significantly less than five percent of the trunk cross-section.”
Frei emphasizes: “I'm not someone who doesn't know when to cut down a tree!” His tree was clearly sick.
And in view of the violent storms that swept through the large district town last summer, he is now glad to have removed the linden tree.
“Who knows what would have happened!”
I'm not one to know when to trim a tree!
Günther Frei from Dachau
Free from difficult decision: numbers or process?
What happens next?
Frei will probably have to pay.
In the end, he believes this will still be cheaper than hiring a lawyer and an expert.
Not to mention the stress and hassle that comes with litigation.
“It’s not worth it,” he fears.
What is certain for him is that he is quite disappointed with the city administration.
He says: “That’s how you make angry citizens.”
Mayor Florian Hartmann, who spoke out in favor of the introduction two years ago, gave Günther Frei little hope of an amicable agreement on the matter at the most recent citizens' meeting: "If you decide to introduce a tree protection ordinance, then you have to implement it."
The goal of the Dachau ordinance, like the tree protection ordinances in other cities and municipalities, is always the same: to keep the community green.