STRENGTHENED measures on the import of most species of oak
into England are to be introduced to protect native trees from the
threat of the tree pest Oak Processionary Moth (OPM).
The bolstered measures will only permit imports of
certain oak trees, including: those from OPM-free
countries; those from designated pest-free areas
including Protected Zones (PZ) – an area of the
European Union declared free of OPM and those
that have been grown under complete physical
protection for their lifetime.
This Statutory Instrument (SI) builds on measures
introduced in August 2018 and applies to all oak trees,
except cork oak, over a certain size. This is because
these trees represent the greatest likelihood of introducing
OPM into the UK PZ, as they are more susceptible to pest
populations and more difficult to inspect.
The restrictions will cover both imports from overseas and
the movement of trees from areas of the country where OPM is
already present – London and surrounding counties, as well as
Wales, where four trees planted near Cardiff Central Station have
been affected.Biosecurity Minister Lord Gardiner said: “Biosecurity is
absolutely key to everything we do and we must to do more to
stop pests and diseases crossing continents and borders. That
is why as a country we have more protected zones than
anywhere else in the EU.
“It is essential that we further strengthen our import
controls on oak trees. These new measures will
ensure robust protections for our oak trees from
pests such as the oak processionary moth.”
Nicola Spence, DEFRA chief plant health officer,
said: “Since 2012 we have invested more than £
million in tree health research, including a dedicated
programme of research and development on oak.
“We will continue to work with local authorities and
land managers to tackle OPM in areas where it is present with
a control programme of treatment and surveillance. These
strengthened measures will help protect against further arrivals of
the pest on our shores.
“The Plant Health Service has received reports of an
exceptional expansion of the OPM population in parts of Europe
due to the hot weather experienced last year.”14 AUGUST 2019 FORESTRYJOURNAL.CO.UK
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LATEST UPDATE FROM THE GLOBAL FORESTRY INDUSTRY
AS the impact of ash dieback on the UK
treescape gathers pace, woodland owners
and managers are sharing their experiences
to help others manage that impact. A new
resource by the Royal Forestry Society (RFS),
in partnership with the Forestry Commission,
shares case studies from ten sites as they
tackle the devastating disease.
The case studies range from woodlands
within historic landscapes looking to keep
the local character of the treescape to owners
coming together to fell roadside trees to
maintain their safety; and from a business
that may lose the coppice woodland from
which it sources bespoke walking sticks to
sites taking a wait-and-see approach, and
others looking to maximise timber values.
RFS chief executive Simon Lloyd said: “Ash
dieback has now spread across England and
Wales. Evidence suggests we will lose more
than 90% of our ash trees and that will have
an enormous impact not just on the trees we
see in our woodland, but on the timber we
produce in the future in the UK. Ash dieback
is likely to be as transformative
to the landscape as Dutch elm
disease in the 1970s.
“Our thanks go to all the
owners featured in this report
for sharing their experiences.
There is no effective preventative
or curative treatment. How
woodland owners respond
will depend on their individual
management objectives and the age
and size of the trees. These case studies
demonstrate a number of different
approaches to help others facing similar
scenarios.
“Research is ongoing to breed tolerant
trees, but in the meantime we may lose a
generation of ash trees from our woodlands.New RFS
case study
shows fight-
back against
dieback
TIGHTER RESTRICTIONS ON OAK TREE IMPORTS TO COMBAT OPM
With this loss however come
some opportunities to look
again at the trees we are
planting in our woods, and to
restock using species, native
and non-native, which are likely
to be tolerant to the challenges
of pests, diseases and climate
change in the future.”
Each of the case studies
featured is willing to be contacted
for further information. The resource also
signposts to further reading and guidance
on identifying symptoms, ash management,
health and safety, restocking and resilience.
Ash Dieback Case Studies: Sharing
Knowledge is available online at http://www.rfs.org.
uk/about/publications/rfs-research-reports.W s a p r a t o c