UC-Berkeley Can Chop Sitters' Trees: Judge

After a year and a half of wrangling, a California judge gave UC Berkeley the green light yesterday to cut down dozens of trees in order to build an athletic training center next to its football stadium. Three protesters are still living in one tree at the site and are refusing to leave, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The Alameda County judge said the plaintiffs—including the city of Berkeley and an environmental group—have one week to appeal before the injunction blocking construction is lifted. Beside tearing down 44 trees, opponents complained about the project’s location in an earthquake-fault zone; the judge, however, said the university had met requirements on both fronts in allowing it to move forward. (More University of California Berkeley stories.)