Environmentalists say those in charge for the upkeep in one Bronx area are actually causing damage to local green space.

Friends of Pelham Parkway say trees are helpful in improving the air quality in the Bronx, which struggles with pollution. That's why they say they want to know why they are being knocked down.

The Nature Advocacy Group recently posted a sign on a downed tree after a witness says a Parks Department mower knocked it down while cutting the grass.

They say this is not the first time, adding that there is tree damage at Pelham Parkway and also at Hutchinson River Greenway.

The group says it notified the Parks Department but that nothing has changed.

The Parks Department just started a "Hug a Tree" campaign a week ago, encouraging New Yorkers to take care of these vital resources. Friends of Pelham Parkway says the department's actions are hypocritical.

"This deprives our community of nature. The children we have here deal with issues other children would not deal with elsewhere. They deal with poverty, violence, bullying many issues when we have nature for them it provides mental and physical benefits they wouldn't have elsewhere," said Friends of Pelham Parkway Founder Roxanne Delgado.

Friends of Pelham Parkway is demanding that no more lawnmowers be used -- only weed whackers and better-trained park staff. They also say they want the Parks Department to plant replacement trees.

News 12 reached out to the Parks Department for comment and has not heard back yet.