30,000 trees to be felled in UK as climate change drives disease

At least 30,000 trees are expected to be cut down this winter, the National Trust has said, warning climate change is driving tree and plant disease.

Milder and wetter winters and warmer summers caused by global heating are creating ideal conditions for diseases and pests to spread, the trust said.

Pathogens like ash dieback, Phytophthora ramorum and acute oak decline could have an even bigger impact across the British landscape as the effects of climate change hit.

Trees’ natural defences are also more likely to be weakened by the stress of drought, flooding and high temperatures that they are facing on a more regular basis.

“This could have a catastrophic impact on our countryside and for nature, as homes for wildlife are depleted,” said John Deakin, the trust’s head of trees and woodland.

Between 75% and 95% of UK ash trees are forecast to be lost in the next 20 to 30 years.

Native trees also face a growing threat from powerful storms, with thousands coming down as Storm Arwen hit the UK late last month.

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Trees themselves are an important tool in the fight against climate change, as they lock up carbon through photosynthesis, as does the surrounding soil and vegetation.

Mr Deakin said “many iconic and native species may disappear,” adding it was crucial to create landscapes and woodlands that are more resilient to the changing weather.

The conservation charity expects to spend £3m in the coming months to tackle ash dieback, up from £2m last year.

The trust is calling for donations for its Plant A Tree fundraising campaign to help it plant a diverse array of trees from more resilient species in the woodlands it manages to future-proof them against climate change.

A spokesman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said: “Protecting trees from pests and diseases is a key part of our approach to biosecurity.

“That is why we are acting swiftly and robustly to manage and eradicate the outbreaks of Ips typographus (eight-toothed spruce bark beetle), and the growing threat of plant pests and diseases due to climate change and globalisation.”

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