By Naomi Larkin
A second chainsaw attack on One Tree Hill's lone pine is expected to prove fatal for the 125-year-old tree.
A family of four yesterday allegedly climbed the fence, ripped off a protective metal cladding, and attacked the tree with a chainsaw. Police stopped them just after 10 am.
Council spokesman
Cameron Parr, effectively ring-barked the tree.
Its future was already in doubt after a chainsaw attack in October 1994 by Maori activist Mike Smith.
"The cuts that happened in 1994 were significant," Mr Parr said.
"The tree has suffered from that and we believed there were about eight to 10 years left in the tree. The cuts today have certainly reduced that lifespan."
A 44-year-old woman, a 46-year-old man and a 15-year-old girl from Kaeo, Northland, and a 20-year-old woman from Dargaville have been jointly charged with criminal damage and unlawfully being in a closed yard.
They will appear in the Auckland District Court today.
Onehunga Constable Jason Lamont said police were struggling to unravel the motive behind yesterday's chainsawing.
"We believe it had something to do with the closing of a school or a church in Northland, but we don't know any more than that."
The group carried placards, written in a mix of Maori and English, as part of their protest. A brochure given to Constable Lamont was labelled "Spiritual Peoples (sic) Vision 2000 and Beyond" and contained references to European, African, Polynesian and Chinese spiritualism.
Mr Parr said yesterday's damage started from one end of Mr Smith's cut and circled the tree.
"This not only affects the tree's nutrient flow, it also has a significant impact on its structure."
The council will get reports on the tree today from a structural engineer and an arborist.
