Latest information on ash dieback

Helen Arnold, Tree and Woodland Manager has provided the following information/

As part of Parks and Grounds Service we have established a new cross council Tree and Woodland team, providing a one stop shop for all tree matters. We are currently laying the foundations for the new service.

We have 4 specialist Arboricultural teams covering:

· Trees and planning – we are planning consultees, providing development advice around TPO’s / CA’s / minor and major applications involving trees and we deal with all trees related insurance claims

· Tree asset management – we maintain a tree inventory for all council owned trees and manage the risk through survey and inspection of the asset

· Tree operations – tree works identified by the survey team are carried out by our two inhouse tree surgery teams and external contractors

· Tree planting and woodland creation – a strategic approach to protecting the trees we have, whilst increasing tree canopy cover across North Yorkshire, working with our delivery and funding partners.

We are developing an umbrella Tree and Woodland policy with three strategies that will explain how we will meet policy aims: tree planting strategy / tree risk and maintenance strategy / Ash dieback (ADB) strategy.

We are also in the process of creating a Trees and Woodlands webpage for the council’s website, which will contain useful information on council owned trees and how we manage them, along with more general information on tree management issues across North Yorkshire and nationally. This will be the main resource for the general public, internal services and Councillors.

In the current absence of information on the council’s website, information may be found at:

Ash dieback - Yorkshire Dales National Park : Yorkshire Dales National Park

Helping the UK tackle the impacts of ash dieback

Ash Dieback (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus) - Woodland Trust

Living Ash Project - Living Ash Project

Contact the team by email to trees@northyorks.gov.uk