The Snoqualmie Parks and Recreation Department manages the city’s Street Tree Program, which encompasses trees throughout Snoqualmie — more than 7,000 of them on Snoqualmie Ridge alone. The trees add to the environmental health and beauty of our community.

Recently, a removal and replacement program has begun for unhealthy or dying trees on Snoqualmie Ridge. The project will continue into the first quarter of 2010 in the Ironwood and Crestview neighborhoods and along Fairway Avenue.

When a tree is removed, a healthy one will be planted in its place. The city’s landscaping contractor will restore the area around the tree, clean the soil, and clean project-related debris from sidewalks and streets.

To maintain the health of currently thriving trees and nurture replacement trees, the parks department requests the assistance of residents in caring for street trees that abut their property. With property owners helping with the basic tasks of weeding the circles around the tree bases and watering trees during the dry season, the lives of the city’s trees can be prolonged and their benefits and beauty preserved.

To learn more about the project, contact Larry White of the parks department at (425) 831-5784 or lwhite@ci.snoqualmie.wa.us.