The City Council of Oakland has slammed a Nigerian medical doctor, Matthew Bernard, and his wife, Lynn Warner, with a fine of nearly $1 million (about N140 million)  for allegedly cutting down 38 protected trees around their property on Claremont Avenue.

According to California-based media outlet KQED, the penalty was approved after a heated public hearing on Tuesday where more than 20 residents demanded strict enforcement of Oakland’s tree protection laws.

Residents argued that the removal of the trees posed serious environmental risks, stressing that the trees were crucial for wildfire prevention, ecological balance and public health in the community.

Reports said Bernard and Warner had defended their actions, claiming the trees were removed based on the professional advice of an arborist.

Speaking during the hearing, Bernard maintained that the trees, which were cut down nearly four years ago, were either “dead, dying, leaning,” or otherwise hazardous.

City authorities, however, rejected the explanation and imposed a total penalty of $915,135.40 on the couple.

The council also placed a claim on the property, a move expected to block any sale or development of the land until the fine is fully paid.

Defending the decision, community tree specialist Erys Gagnez said the environmental loss caused by the destruction of the mature trees could not easily be reversed.

“Trees of that size are not commercially available for replacement. Even with replanting, it will take decades, even centuries, to restore the ecological and protective functions that were lost,” Gagnez said.

She added that the magnitude of the fine reflected the severe environmental impact of the tree removal.