Chopping down trees is selfish and criminal

A COUNCIL has taken the extraordinary step of stacking two empty shipping containers on a clifftop to spoil water views for householders suspected of illegally cutting down trees.
Port Stephens Council put them there - with a crane, at a cost of more than $10,000 -to punish those responsible for cutting down 20 trees.
Irate locals are calling the green monolith "a monument to stupidity'' and complain they are being treated like children.
And the council agrees, according to group manager, facilities and services, Mike Trigar.
"Obviously those people who weren't involved (in chopping down the trees) and now have their views obstructed are not happy, and we appreciate that position,'' he said.
"But it's like if you can't find the perpetrator in school, so everybody is held back for detention.''
But Mr Trigar is unrepentant: ``We've told people that chopping down trees is selfish and criminal, but that hasn't worked, so we've had to go to the next level.'' (read more...)