The University of Michigan is moving a 350-ton burr oak to make room for a new building at the Ross School of Business. The relocation, which will cost $400,000, has drawn criticism from within the school, according to Fox News.
Arborists will employ a newly patented technique called Arborlift to hoist the 44-foot-in-diameter rootball. The process uses oil well drilling equipment and air bladders to pull the tree from a hole that has already been dug around it. The tree will then be hauled one city block and replanted. The arborists estimate that the tree's chances of survival are 70-80 percent.
Some students are complaining that relocating the tree is a waste of money, particularly at a time when the university is increasing in-state tuition by 1.6 percent and out-of-state tuition by 3.4 percent.
