A Cambridge company’s plans to expand at some point in the future prompted the owner of a property crisscrossed by ATV trails on the city’s east side to ask the region for permission to remove about an acre of trees adjacent to a “significant forest area.”

The property is located at 51 Moorefield Street, an industrial area near the Savage Drive waste disposal centre that is frequently used by off-road vehicles. The property is owned by Network Site Services Ltd., a company that constructs sewer and water mains.

The Region of Waterloo recommends that the council grant permission to remove the trees, pointing out that the trees in question are not part of the seven hectares at the western end of the property, which the region considers a “key environmental feature”.

A consultant appointed to assess the health of the trees said the trees were generally free of disease and insect damage, but many were “scarred and damaged by fire, vehicle collisions and axe blows, and that the creation of the paths had resulted in severe soil erosion and associated root damage.”

The region’s staff do not expect the white pine plantation to develop into a profitable forest area without long-term management and “significant” investment.

The property is also located in an area designated for industrial development, so regional officials recommend granting the requested deforestation permit.

Notice of the application was distributed to the 12 owners of surrounding properties on August 13.