Henrico County is a suburb outside of the city of Richmond, Virginia. In recent years, there have been numerous accounts of deforestation that have been enacted by Henrico County's Planning Commission Department. This year, it must stop.
Right now, on the corner of Parham Road and Broad Street, is a forested area that is located near the London Towne Apartments and the Shannon Green Townhomes. In 2015, the Henrico County Planning Commission developed and approved a plan to completely deforest this entire area of trees in order to build 135 townhomes.
Please sign my petition to stop the deforestation plan in Henrico County!
According to the Planning Commission, this would accomodate the 2% population growth in the county. With other accounts of deforestation in Henrico, however, they would have built apartment homes instead of overly expensive houses if they really cared about an increase in population.
This petition is made to stop this plot of land from being completely destroyed. Although the plan was already approved, there is still a possibility to compromise with Henrico County if not change the entire plan altogether.
This wooded area contains numerous animals which include a wide range of bird species as well as squirrels, deer, raccoons, etc. Destroying this ecosystem would not only deprive these animals of a habitat but would also contribute to the growing amount of carbon dioxide in the air. As many people know, the Earth is becoming warmer due to the release of greenhouse gases. Although cutting this plot of trees down may seem miniscule, it actually is an addition to the innumerable amount of land that was once considered insiginificant and thus destroyed.
Another issue is that the Board of Supervisors meeting which is held for Henrico County citizens to express their opinions is usually in the morning when most people are at work. Because of this, many proposals that the public generally disagreed with went unheard which represents Henrico County's disproportionate representation of the middle class. This petition would additionally give a voice to those who are unable to make it to these meetings which let the Planning Commission know how Henrico County's citizens feel about certain projects.
Our planet needs our help and we need to start with our local communities before we move on to bigger issues. Sign this petition today for a greener Henrico County and a greener Earth!
