Rhode Island Ruined Christmas

For real. They ruined Christmas. Check it out.

Apparently, to comply with new, tougher fire codes enacted after the Station fire in 2003, the tree had to be hosed down with a flame-retardant chemical. Unfortunately, the chemical killed the tree, sending the needles to the floor like Charlie Brown's little spindly tree.
But here's my question. Read this quote:

Maynard said "the tree-growers' association warned us'' that spraying a tree with (No-Burn) fire retardant dries it out more quickly, but the decision was made to spray the tree anyway because it was going up in "a place of public access.''

If the chemical dries the tree out, doesn't that make the tree more of a fire hazard?
Only in Rhode Island.