Over 30,000 Ash trees to be cut down in Glasgow

The disease Ash Dieback is sweeping through the species around the UK – caused by the fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus (more commonly known as Chalara fraxinea).

Glasgow City Council tree officers have confirmed a “noticeable increase” of Ash dieback in city over the last two years.

An Ash Dieback Action Plan is to be rolled out, which will see at risk trees removed from parks, streets, schools and other areas for safety reasons.

It is predicted 4500 trees annually would be felled over the next seven years. And the huge bill to bring the 31,500 trees down would be between £25 million to £38 million, according to official estimates.

Glasgow City Council bosses also predict the cost of replacing them will be an additional seven figure sum.

A report on the problem was presented to the council’s Environment, Sustainability & Carbon Reduction City Policy Committee yesterday.

The report said: “The potential severity of the risks highlights the need for a dedicated professional unit to manage the forthcoming significant ash dieback problem, and to help avoid negative impacts occurring that may be to the detriment of the Council, as well as to the residents and visitors of the city.”

Commenting on the cost, the report said: “Clearly these are huge sums and the expectation although unconfirmed at the moment is there will be a level of Government support to address this country wide issue.”

Ash makes up 12 per cent of the city’s trees.

There are about 250,000 Ash trees across Glasgow under both council and private ownership.

Ash Dieback is mainly spread through the wind by pathogenic infectious spores and can drift for for many miles in a short timeframe.