Highway 34 ‘Save The Trees’ Protest Planned For Friday Afternoon

Detroit Lakes, MN (KDLM) – A peaceful protest and rally is being planned outside MnDOT in Detroit Lakes Friday, February 10th to protest tree removal along Highway 34.

“MnDot has refused to meet with the public to hear their concerns and obey the law,” says Willis Mattison with the Save The Trees Coalition. “So the public is now coming directly to MnDot in person to deliver their message.”

The Save the Trees Coalition has been speaking out about tree removal along the Scenic Byway on Highway 34 between Detroit Lakes and Osage since MnDot announced the highway reconstruction project would be removing trees from the highway.

“Before resorting to a lawsuit, citizens want to appeal to MnDOT’s better judgment to halt the logging long enough to comply with the law that requires they show evidence that cutting trees will reduce crashes, and reduce road salt pollution,” says Mattison. “To date, MnDOT has produced no evidence that cutting these trees will do any of those things.”

According to the MnDOT website, the original construction plans proposed an 85% removal of shade trees, with 15% of trees remaining out to 250 feet. The final revised plan calls for a 50% removal of trees with 50% of trees remaining out to 100 feet. Special considerations for red and white pines were to be analyzed individually.

“We take these public comments seriously and have met with several stakeholders to discuss solutions.” the website says. “We are doing our best to balance the needs between safety, environment, and budget.”

The tree removal process began on January 23rd, and construction crews have been removing trees between Toad Lake and County Highway 29.

The Save The Trees rally will begin at First Lutheran Church in Detroit Lakes at noon on Friday to organize. At 2:00, it will caravan to MnDOT Headquarters on the Highway 10 Frontage Road. At 2:30, Coalition Leaders will hold speeches, and at 3:00 the protest will enter MnDOT offices requesting to see officials to present their demands.

The Detroit Lakes Police Department will be on hand to ensure the protest remains peaceful.