Thousands more infected trees felled on Salisbury Plain
There are more removals planned for the future as well
The Defence Infrastruce Organisation, Landmarc and KWR Plant Hire have carried out a tree-felling clearance scheme on Salisbury Plain.
Thousands of infected trees with Ash Dieback have had to be removed from alongside the A345.
There's no cure or treatment for it and over time it weakens them before eventually they die.
The DIO say this presents a significant health and safety risk, especially in areas used by military personnel on the Salisbury Plain Training Area.
It wasn't a simple job to remove the trees from the A345 though, as there were many power lines that were tangled up.
This meant that a number of road closures and diversions were implemented to carry out the work.
The early completion of the felling along the A345 means reduced disruption for local people and a lower cost to the taxpayer.
About 2300 tonnes of wood was removed by the felling team in 45 days.
This was slightly more than expected and was sold as biomass chips to be used for energy generation, partially offsetting the cost of the operation.
Lieutenant Colonel Tim Jalland, DIO’s Commander South West Training Estate, said:
"This is a fantastic example of good planning, communications and collaboration which has enabled the project to finish well ahead of schedule, protecting those that use the estate and the public at large.
I’m really pleased to see how successful it has been and would like to thank the local communities for their patience and forbearance whilst having to deal with the inevitable disruption caused by the road closures."
The feeling of trees with Ash Dieback is continuing in Heytesbury, with more planned in several areas across the Plain.
Judith Peachey, Landmarc’s Forestry and Arboriculture Manager said:
"So far, around 80,000 infected trees have been felled on Salisbury Plain, including on 20 miles of roadside. We now need to focus on the process of replanting and regeneration and have held extensive discussions with the Forestry Commission and Natural England about the restoration of felled areas, which is reflected in the approved felling licences for the operations.
Within the woodland compartments, space has been left for the natural regeneration of tree seed already in the soil and this will be enhanced with the planting of native broadleaved species. A small proportion of felled timber has also been left on site to provide deadwood habitats to help maintain the current ground flora as much as possible.
The removal of ash is a devastating loss to the local landscape, but we are carefully considering which species will be planted so that we can provide a woodland that is more resilient to disease for future generations."
The tree felling programme started in early 2020 near Tidworth.