Davey Tree Flipbooks

11 May/June 2024 | THE DAVEY BULLETIN habitats, invasive plants, archaeological resources, waste materials, air quality and dust, and spill prevention of fuels, oils, and greases. "For each one of the environmental values, we came up with performance indicators and best management practices on how to complete the work," Rennie said. Dozens of loads of merchantable timber from the tree removals were donated and delivered to Kwantlen First Nations. Any non-merchantable timber was given to Matsqui First Nations in Abbotsford for firewood. Lucas St. Onge, foreman, Kelowna Residential, said this project was beneficial for the Residential teams as it fell during what's typically their slow season. As for working with employees from the other offices, St. Onge said it was a good melting pot of people from different skill levels who were able to test their knowledge in a controlled environment. As time progressed, he was able to teach newer hires how to work safely and efficiently. "We didn't have to worry about damaging the ground like we would with a normal backyard," St. Onge said. "We had the space, the ropes, and I was able to teach some of the crew members to take some larger treetops than they probably would in any other residential setting. Some were apprehensive at first, and then after they got a couple big tops out of their way, they said, 'Wow, this is amazing!' It was a pretty beautiful learning experience," he added. In the end, St. Onge said, when he drives on Highway 1, he'll be able to see the work they accomplished. "Davey got to be a part of this upgrading of our infrastructure across Canada that will be here for a long time to come. Bigger projects like this are really rewarding," said St. Onge. Kevin Dykstra, operations vice president, British Columbia and Yukon, Utility, Davey Tree Expert Co. of Canada, Limited, worked with the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MOTI) on a project to clear trees along a 30 kilometer stretch of highway between Langley Township and Abbots- ford, British Columbia, as part of a British Columbia Highway 1 widening project, on behalf of Kwantlen First Nations. Dykstra called Matt Coady, area manager, west, Canadian Residential, to ask for employees to assist. Three two-person crews from the Burnaby, Calgary, and Kelowna Residential offices worked with project lead Mike Davis, general foreman, Vancouver Utility, to clear the trees. Dykstra said they could not have completed the project without Canadian Residential's help. "It was a real collaborative effort," he said. "The interesting part about the job for us was the fact that because Highway 1 is a busy highway with only two lanes going into the major city of Vancouver, it cannot be closed during the day," Dykstra said. "We started setting up around 9:30 p.m., were on the highway at 10:30 p.m. and had to have everything cleaned up by 5:30 a.m. the following morning. Some of the work was on the sides, but most of the work is in the middle of the median." The work was completed within a two-month window before bird nesting season began. In addition, a construction environmental management plan needed to be provided to MOTI for approval prior to the project's start. Davey Resource Group's Peter Rennie, consulting arborist, wrote the report, which defined environmental values to consider, including erosion and sediment control, fish and aquatic habitats, terrestrial Right: Lucas St. Onge, foreman, Kelowna Residential office, is preparing a row of cedar trees to be reduced to a safe height so a feller buncher can be used to complete the tree removals. "The trees were more than 100-feet tall. We couldn't fell the trees full length because they were right next to the highway," Kevin Dykstra said. "We took a two-tiered approach to reduce the height with climbing crews, then removal crews used a feller buncher and other equipment to remove the trees." Davey Canada Residential office employees who completed the Highway 1 tree removals included Burnaby's Tim Arnold, foreman, and Christopher Dilly, crew leader; Calgary's Jason Rehill, district manager, and Tsz Yan "Raymond" Leung, climber; and Kelowna's Hunter Beckett, groundperson, and Lucas St. Onge, foreman. Canadian Utility, Vancouver Utility account employees Paul Dumas, apprentice, Gordon MacGregor, power saw operator, and Joel Peters, general foreman, assisted with final touches. This Northern Saw-whet owl observed Lucas St. Onge, foreman, Kelowna Residential office, as he worked in the tree. "The owl followed me branch by branch, continuing up the tree while I worked," St. Onge said. Owl Follows St. Onge CANADIAN TEAMS COLLABORATE TO IMPROVE BC HIGHWAY 1 MISSION

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