Controversy Over Tree Removal at East Potomac Golf Links

East Potomac Golf Links has seen several transformations since golfers started playing there over a century ago. Yet, few changes have altered its landscape as swiftly as the recent tree removal.

In mere hours on October 10, National Park Service (NPS) teams cut down over 400 trees across two major areas of the federal course. By Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes ordered the halt of this operation until at least October 26, suspecting NPS of possibly violating federal environmental laws and warning of irreversible damage.

“Destroyed trees cannot be replaced,” Judge Reyes emphasized.

The fallen trees are still visible at East Potomac Golf Links. Recent filings showed that the government believes about 729 trees were slated for removal, with around 300 still standing. Crews reportedly cut about 369 trees from Zone A, which stretches from the 17th green to halfway down the 16th fairway on the Blue Course. An additional 63 trees were removed from Zone B, spanning behind the 12th green through the 13th hole into the first part of the 14th. This brings the estimated total removal to roughly 432 trees, though NPS intends to verify the count by checking stumps.

Unlike trees removed earlier for being dead, dying, hazardous, or invasive, the trees cut down recently were healthy and noninvasive, as per NPS officials’ statements. Cut trunks and branches were left scattered between the fairways.

NPS stated the removal aimed to follow a 2019 cultural landscape report urging tree thinning to restore the open, links-style design envisioned when the course was originally created. The agency insists this work is unrelated to President Donald Trump’s proposed overhaul of East Potomac.

Judge Reyes was skeptical, suggesting that the urgency in tree removal was influenced by Trump’s desire for a quick redesign, rather than a spontaneous interest to execute the old report.