Fake drastic trees: £170,000 plan for 10 artificial carbon-filtering green benches that double as Wi-Fi hotspots is rejected after council opts to plant 275 real ones
- Opposition councillors on Slough Council wanted to install 10 £17,000 trees
- They have air filters to reduce CO2 and produce oxygen as a well as Wi-Fi points
- But plans were rejected by Labour majority at council meeting last week
Conservative councillors have been slammed over plans to install artificial trees in their town centre – instead of planting real ones.
Opposition members on Slough Borough Council put forward plans to spend £170,000 on fake foliage at a meeting last Thursday.
The futuristic trees would cost £17,000 each and have air filters that can reduce carbon dioxide while producing oxygen to improve air quality, they said.
They would also boast free Wi-Fi and mobile phone charging points as well as digital advertising boards to promote local businesses.
But the proposals were laughed down by ruling Labour councillors who quickly rejected them.
Opposition councillors on Slough Borough Council put forward plans to spend £170,000 on 10 artificial trees (two models pictured) at a meeting last Thursday. Pictured left: One model that doubles up as a bench and right another with a digital screen to show how much air it has cleaned
The Conservative councillors claimed each of the artificial trees would be as good as 275 real ones for tackling air pollution.
They are produced by a company called CityTrees and have been dubbed the ‘world’s first biotech pollution filter’.
The green structures use living plants to filter pollution from the air for the benefit of nearby residents and pedestrians.
Each CityTree contains a water tank, irrigation systems and sensors to monitor plant growth — all powered by a combination of on-board solar panels and internal batteries.
By fostering different types of moss, the structures are able to remove various pollutants from the air — including particulate matter and nitrogen oxides — all whilst producing oxygen.
The CityTrees can even provide the local council with detailed information on their air-filtering performance, present status and environmental data on its immediate surroundings.
They have already been introduced across pollution hot spots in London and have previously been employed in other cities, including Berlin and Hong Kong.
But the proposals were laughed down by ruling Labour councillors in Slough (pictured) who quickly rejected them
Local Tory leader Cllr Wayne Strutton, who proposed the idea, said the trees would also be self-funding because of corporate sponsorship.
The motion read: ‘This Council should look at the imminent threats posed by climate change and pollution and do its bit to help by looking at greener, more sustainable methods.
‘We propose to install 10 City ‘Trees’ across the borough as a step towards a cleaner, greener town.’
But Labour council leader Cllr James Swindlehurst voted down the proposals.
He said: ‘It’s the question whether you want to have 10,000 real trees to improve your environment or ten metal ones.
‘I think I will stay on the real tree front and leave the Conservatives to put up metal ones, frankly.’
Local Dave McDermott joked: ‘Artificial trees for an artificial council. Very apt.’
Another called Jon said: ‘How would these things filter CO2? Where would the carbon end up?’
They are produced by a company called CityTrees and have been dubbed the ‘world’s first biotech pollution filter’. One is pictured in Leytonstone, north east London