To give members who pay over $100,000 annually a better view of the Potomac River, the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia recently chopped down a grove of at least 15 healthy, mature trees and shrubs. That's not all — the trees were then dumped into the river.
The trunks and branches clogged the waterway, creating a safety hazard for kayakers and boaters. The dumped debris can result in currents that pull watercraft into the branches. It "can hit you in the chest; it can submerge you under the water, it can get caught on your life jacket," Steven McKone, who teaches kayaking at a camp across the river from the golf club, told WUSA9.
When they're alive, trees along the shore of the river are very beneficial to the environment. Among other things, they help prevent erosion, and they protect the quality of the water and the lives of animals that live in the river.
The Trump National Golf Club is located on the state line between Virginia and Maryland, and it may have violated laws in both states. It did not obtain a permit to chop down trees on a flood plain, which is required in Virginia's Loudoun County. Additionally, dumping debris is illegal in Maryland.
Chopping down the trees was unnecessary and dumping them in the Potomac River was dangerous. Please sign and share this petition urging Loudoun County and Maryland Natural Resources officials to charge Trump National Golf Club and its owner to the fullest extent of the law.
