The Environment Ministry should intervene to save valuable cedars and inform residents if they are threatened with being axed, store owner Richard Powell said yesterday.

Mr. Powell vented his frustration that he was unable to stop a Works and Engineering crew from chopping down a large cedar on Ord Road, Warwick on Monday, which the National Trust rated as one of the best 20 cedars to survive the blight of the 1940's and 1950's.

Mr. Powell, who owns the Lines Food and Liquor Market opposite the house, found out on Thursday that the tree was threatened and made initial enquiries about saving it, but was taken aback when he found workmen had cut down half the tree on Monday morning.

The owner of the property where it stood had asked Works and Engineering to fell the tree after it became unsafe when work started on a sidewalk.

Mr. Powell, who sits on the Works and Engineering committee, said: "Any time a cedar tree is threatened, Environment should be involved.

"Someone in Government has to make decisions to say a tree like that should be saved and to try to talk the people out of it.

"About 16 people came into my shop on Monday morning and they were absolutely devastated.

"I remember as a youngster in the 1950s when this Island went from green to grey in the cedar blight and after all we've gone through it is very sad to lose this.

"I tried to stop the owner from doing it, but I didn't try hard enough. I was totally disheartened and said `damn, why didn't I follow up on this earlier'."

Works and Engineering Minister Alex Scott said on Monday night that his workers were only complying with the owner's wishes to chop down the tree after its roots became exposed.

Yesterday, a man who identified himself as the owner of the property, told The Royal Gazette he did not want to comment.