Paris Probes Mutilation of 79 Trees in 16th Arrondissement as Damage Valued at €400,000

The figure reflects a 2021 city scale that prices trunk injuries by how much of the circumference is stripped.

Overview

Municipal police documented the deliberate damage in late November on Place des États‑Unis and Avenue d’Iéna, with marks about 60 cm from the ground.
The City of Paris says it has filed a complaint and estimates the financial loss at €400,000 using the Council of Paris’s 2021 tree valuation rules.
Under that framework, compensation ranges from 20% to 100% of a tree’s value depending on the proportion of the trunk affected, with full‑circumference lesions counted at 100%.
An investigation is open, CCTV reviews have produced no identifiable leads so far, and the perpetrators remain unknown.
City services report that bark removal can severely disrupt sap flow to the crown, and they are taking protection and follow‑up measures to support healing.