Judge Halts Tree Cutting at East Potomac Golf Links

East Potomac Golf Links has seen significant changes since golfers first teed off over a century ago. Recently, the landscape changed swiftly when the National Park Service (NPS) cut down over 400 trees in a matter of hours on October 10.

Following these actions, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes intervened, ordering the cutting to stop until at least October 26. She found that NPS likely violated federal environmental law and cautioned against irreversible damage.

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

However, the government responded sharply, urging Reyes to lift her order and accused the court of overreaching its authority. The NPS revealed the project was larger than initially estimated, targeting around 729 trees with about 300 still standing.

Crew reports indicated approximately 369 trees were removed from Zone A, spanning from the 17th green to midway down the 16th fairway of the Blue Course. Another 63 trees were cleared from Zone B, extending from behind the 12th green through the 13th hole and part of the 14th. Overall, this brings the estimated tree removal to around 432, although NPS intends to verify the count through stump checks.

Unlike trees removed earlier this year for being dead, dying, hazardous, or invasive, those cut last weekend were reported to be healthy and noninvasive. Freshly cut trunks and leafy branches now pile between the fairways.

NPS stated the removals aimed to implement recommendations from a 2019 cultural landscape report, suggesting thinning trees to restore the open, links-style character as originally designed. They asserted the work was separate from President Donald Trump’s proposed overhaul of the golf course.

Judge Reyes was skeptical, believing officials accelerated the tree work due to Trump’s urgency for redesigning, instead of any revival of interest in the old report’s implementation.