ENVIRONMENTALISTS BURN MIDNIGHT OIL OVER TREE-CHOPPING INCIDENT.(ACCENT)

Byline: GARY GRAFF - Knight-Ridder

Kermit the Frog once sang, "It ain't easy bein' green," and the members of the Australian rock group Midnight Oil can easily understand that refrain.

The quintet, whose activist stance is as politically correct as they come, recently chopped down a tree in front of its office in Sydney. The roots were clogging up the sewer pipes, and the branches were falling on the sidewalk.

And the environmentally conscious group planned to plant three trees to replace it.

But the cry of hypocrisy, led by conservative politicians in Australia, was instantaneous. For the group it was frustrating, but singer Peter …