Since June more than 50 trees have been removed along the H-2 Freeway as part of a state Department of Transportation safety initiative, and more than two dozen others will be cut down by the time the project ends in September.

The action has prompted dozens of complaints to The Outdoor Circle and the DOT.

Mililani Mauka resident Jeff Yuh, 56, said he was exasperated to discover so many trees being cut down upon returning from a family trip last week.

"It looks like they are going to slice everything down based on what I've seen," said Yuh, whose backyard is adjacent to the Mililani Mauka off-ramp. He said he was against their removal because the trees act as a "sound buffer" to freeway traffic noise.

Department spokesman Scott Ishikawa said the wide branches of the non-native albizzia, opiuma and Christmas berry trees — now stumps — posed a safety hazard to passing motorists.

The trees were examined by an arborist, he said, who determined that the trunks were hollow, increasing the risk that the tree could topple.

In June a fallen albizzia branch damaged an emergency call box and could have potentially harmed motorists, he said.

"The weight of the branches gets so heavy, and they grow out so wide that they put a lot of stress on the trees and at some point the branches start to snap," Ishikawa said.

He emphasized that only the trees that pose a safety hazard to the public are being removed, and that trees such as monkeypods might be replanted there near the end of the year.

The goal is to create a 25-foot buffer zone from the shoulder of H-2, he said.

Mary Steiner, chief executive officer of The Outdoor Circle, an organization dedicated to protecting beauty in Hawai'i, said she had no clue the trees were being pruned or removed. Her organization usually is contacted before the removal of trees, she said, but not this time.

"We think in a situation on the scale of this tree removal project, that we should have been consulted," Steiner said.

If the trees posed a threat to motorists, Steiner said, she would have not objected to their removal. She agreed that some needed to be removed, but not this many.

"Just because a tree is not native does not make it a 'bad' tree," Steiner said. "They made it sound like these trees were going to fall down immediately. Now, there might have been one or two trees that would have maybe fallen over, but they certainly had time to contact The Outdoor Circle and let us look at the project."

The Outdoor Circle received about 75 complaints from people inquiring about the removal.

Ishikawa said the safety hazard warranted an immediate response.

"It's comforting to know that people care about the trees, but if it poses a risk to human life then we have to do something," Ishikawa said.

Albizzia trees are the cause of most vehicular property claims against the DOT, including an incident in 2004 when a falling branch smashed a woman's windshield, he said.

Albizzia trees also grow along the Pali, Likelike and H-3 highways, but the DOT will consult with The Outdoor Circle before taking on another project of such scale, Ishikawa said.

Steiner was glad to hear that the DOT plans to replant the area along H-2.

"We will be watching to make sure it happens," she said.