Warm the chestnuts and watch out for the bodywork!

Warm the chestnuts and watch out for the bodywork!

"I rent a parking space under a chestnut tree. Over the years, the tree has become very large, the chestnuts are more and more numerous and fall higher and higher. It's a nightmare for the bodywork, which is riddled with dents. When I intervened a few years ago, the management told me that the two chestnut trees could not be cut down and had them pruned without solving the problem. Several tenants are in the same situation, although they are less exposed. What can we do?

Michel, Geneva

In principle, any work on a tree requires careful consideration of its morphology, biology and environment.

In Geneva, the law on buildings and various installations stipulates that no one may cut down a tree of a protected species (which includes fruit trees) without having been authorised to do so. In addition, operations to change the shape of the tree or adapt it to the constraints of the available space must remain exceptional. Thus, pruning and topping are subject to prior authorisation issued by the Department of the Interior, Mobility and the Environment, in accordance with the regulations on the conservation of tree vegetation. The appropriate application forms are available at www.geneve.ch.

It is worth noting that felling or pruning authorisation can be issued immediately when the Department itself, on the advice of the owner or via a third party, finds that a tree presents an imminent danger to people, property or the surrounding natural environment; that a tree is causing a danger of infection or the spread of a disease to vegetation; or that a tree is dead.If your local authority has obtained permission to prune the chestnut trees but not to cut them down, you should insist that the authority establish that they are causing damage to cars. You can do this yourself so that more effective action can be taken on the trees. If this is not the case, your local authority should still consider the appropriate way of protecting your vehicle in exchange for the rent you pay for the parking space, or at least take this major inconvenience into account when setting the rent.