Leicester: Council to fell about 250 trees infected with ash dieback

An "F" has been written on trees that need to be felled

About 250 trees in Leicester are to be felled after they were found to be infected with ash dieback.

The city council said the ash trees, at Gorse Hill Spinney off Anstey Lane, were in such poor condition due to the fungal infection that they "represented an imminent risk to public safety".

A recent inspection found the trees had lost more than 50% of their canopy to the disease, the authority added.

Work to remove them will begin next week.

The council said there was nothing it can do to stop the disease from spreading

The council's trees and woodlands manager Dave Jones said: "As the ash dieback fungus infects the tree, its branches gradually 'die back', become brittle and break apart - with falling branches representing a significant risk to the public.

"We're systematically monitoring the 25,120 ash trees in our ownership but there's nothing we can do to stop the disease from spreading, other than by removing infected and dangerous trees."

The council fears thousands of ash trees may have to be felled in the next 10 years

Although the disease has been present in mainland Europe for a number of decades, it arrived in the UK in 2012.

It has spread to all parts of Britain and affected hundreds of thousands of ash trees, if not millions.

The council said it had committed to developing a long-term plan to restore its landscape amid fears thousands of ash trees may have to be felled in the next 10 years.

It will publish its Ash Dieback Action Plan later this year.