Four 75-year-old Stanley Park redwood trees in peril from vandals' damage, park officials say

Officials from the City of Vancouver and its park board are hoping to catch someone they say has damaged four majestic redwood trees in Stanley Park by scraping bark from their trunks.

Joe McLeod, an arborist with the city, says the damage was noticed at the beginning of March and has only gotten worse.

"It appears to be some kind of slashing being done to the trees," he said.

McLeod says that three redwood trees have been damaged near the Stanley Park brew pub.

One of them, a giant sequoia, has enough bark scraped away that if more is removed, it could face a critical decline.

"If they went around the entire circumference and removed, damaged all the bark and entered into the wood essentially past the cambium … the layer that keeps the tree living … the tree would die."

The other damaged tree is near the concession at Second Beach.

After officials noticed the damage, they hung signs on the trees to try to stop whoever was doing the damage. It continued, however, and in some cases the signs were torn down.

McLeod says the trees are heritage trees. He estimates they are around 75 years old and are "some of the statuesque trees that define Stanley Park."

He is not sure why the damage is being done, but hopes that the person doing it will stop. Park rangers have stepped up their efforts to keep a watch out.

The city can seek compensation for trees that are willfully destroyed in the park.

Anyone with information about the damaged trees is asked to call 311.