In Avalon, residents battle to save beachfront trees

In the densely forested sand dunes that run along 40 blocks of Avalon's beachfront, a few trees stand apart. Japanese black pines grow taller and faster than their cohabitants in the dunes, and some of them are marked - by an orange ribbon around the trunk - for destruction.

"Do you see beetles crawling on these? Do these seem dead to you?" asks resident Martha Wright, gesturing to the trees behind her. "Their only crime is that they grow tall."

The borough received a $24,000 grant in March from the state Department of Environmental Protection to remove about 100 trees that Avalon says are infested with the southern pine beetle, a small boring insect deadly to Japanese black pine trees.

Wright is among a small but vocal group of residents of this Cape May County community who insist that there is no such infestation and have hired an independent certified tree expert to press the point. They say the borough's plan is both an assault on a valuable environmental resource and a misuse of state funds.

At a Borough Council meeting Wednesday evening, the sides butted heads, with residents calling for a change of plans and borough officials insisting they will stay the course.

Council Vice President Nancy Hudanich said the meeting was "the final discussion on these meritless issues."

DEP spokesman Larry Hajna said there is "unquestionable evidence" of southern pine beetles.

While no beetles were found during multiple inspections by three DEP inspectors, that is not uncommon, according to DEP experts.

Still, a handful of residents question both the evidence and the qualifications of the experts who found it.

Several residents hired tree expert Mark Demitroff to investigate, but his efforts have been stymied by a town rule: Jumping the fence into the dunes carries a $2,000 fine, and residents say officials have refused to waive the fine for Demitroff.

Based on his preliminary examinations, from a few feet back from the trees, Demitroff said, he saw no evidence of an infestation, but acknowledged that his determination could change if he were allowed to check the trees up close.

Residents say scientific information has been scarce.

The debate has become contentious beyond the science involved. In a statement on the borough website, Mayor Martin Pagliughi refers to "a few individuals who choose to remain misguided and uninformed," a description residents resent.

In the thick of the dispute, and in the absence of publicized evidence, the residents doubt the borough's motives. If there is no beetle infestation, Wright said, the borough has no right to use the DEP grant.

"Nothing looks like" southern pine beetles, said Wright, 60, who said she checks the dozen Japanese black pines on her own property compulsively. "Cut me down a tree, show me the [distinctive tunnel markings] and show me the southern pine beetles, or don't use the money."

Wright is among those who suspect the borough has another motive in mind: the views of beachfront property owners.

Avalon's Dune Vegetation Management Plan (DVMP) allows beachfront property owners to pay into a trust fund that ultimately compensates contractors for inspecting and trimming vegetation on those owners' properties.

Assistant Business Administrator James Waldron describes it as an effort to maintain ecological diversity. Wright says the program aims to vilify tall, fast-growing Japanese black pines and placate wealthy residents.

Waldron said there is "no overlap" between the removals funded by the DEP grant and the vegetation management plan, although the Lomax Consulting Group works with the town on both. But Wright, among other town residents, sees the DVMP and the recent grant as linked efforts to improve the views of beachfront property owners.

Tom Evaul, who lives near the 48th Street path that houses the marked trees, made reference on Wednesday to an Aug. 19, 2008, town environmental commission meeting when environmental consultant Joe Lomax emphasized the importance of helping residents "retain their view, retain the tax base of those oceanfront homes," while balancing environmental concerns.

Several beachfront homeowners at the 2008 meeting offered public complaints about 40- and 50-foot Japanese black pines blocking their views so that they could be "on the ocean and not [be] able to see the ocean."

Hudanich said Wednesday that there was no connection between the current plan and the 2008 concerns.

Wright estimated that over the last decade or so, the town has chopped down hundreds of trees.

She said she is particularly concerned for the trees because other coastal towns may look to Avalon as a guide for their own vegetation plans.

A DEP spokeswoman emphasized that although Avalon met the criteria for the grant, it was the borough's decision to remove any trees.

Neither local officials nor the tree advocates appear to be changing course.

"My role has always been to protect the dunes," said Elaine Scattergood, who has lived in Avalon for more than 40 years. "It's a unique system rarely found on the East Coast; it's a diverse, wonderful, beautiful area. It should be preserved, and nobody should touch it."

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