Implications for the public estate

1. Implications for the public estate David Colman—Senior Arb. Officer, EDDC

3. Ash is an abundant tree in Devon. Best available figures suggest there are at least 1.9 million full grown or nearly mature ash trees outside woodlands in the county: ash is our second most numerous hedgerow tree. Ash dominated woodland covers about 11,000 ha, 22% of all broadleaved woodland. Ash is also frequent within urban areas – Torbay, for example, has an estimated 95,000 trees. An i-Tree Devon survey carried out in the Sid Valley by volunteers in 2014 found that ash cover was second only to that of Douglas fir, occupying 18% of leaf area21. The report concluded that the loss of ash would have by the far the greatest impact of any tree on society in terms of the benefits that trees have to offer.

4. Results of a survey carried out by Devon County Council Local authority area Estimated nos. of ash Ash / km South Hams 30,811 16 West Devon 74,487 50 Torridge 49,532 29 North Devon 45,284 22 Mid Devon 58,527 33 East Devon 103,644 53 Teignbridge 85,028 51 Exeter 325 8 Total 447,639 263

5. The extra work and expense that landowners and managers will incur as a result of ash dieback is likely to be considerable. Unlike oaks, dead ashes and those that are dying back rapidly become unstable, readily shedding limbs and falling, so posing a substantial and often unpredictable threat.

6. The costs The typical cost of felling and removing a mature roadside tree is about £800 – a conservative figure where traffic has to be controlled. Smaller trees will cost less, and where lines of tree can be removed at the same time the unit price will fall, so an average cost per tree may be £400.

7. Public bodies As with other landowners and managers, local and highways authorities will face significant increased expense, along with regulatory bodies such as the Forestry Commission and NGOs. Ash trees in parks, schools, sports grounds and other public places, as well as those alongside roads, will need to be inspected more frequently than at present, and made safe as necessary.

8. Background Whilst Ash Die Back is the current headline disease affecting our trees, this is only one of many pests and diseases that have, and in the future will compromise the health and structure of our tree population. We have heard this morning of the ongoing threat that the Grey Squirrel presents to the trees of East Devon. Civil law addresses the duty and potential liability to pay damages for a breach of that duty. Criminal Law gives rise to the risk of prosecution in the event of an infringement of the law.

9. Civil law There is a Duty of care to take reasonable and proportionate measures to avoid doing or not doing something that might cause a reasonable and foreseeable risk of injury or damage to persons or property. The Health and Safety Executive have stated “for trees in a frequently visited zone, a system for periodic proactive checks is appropriate”.

10. Criminal law The Health and safety at Work etc. act 1974 places a duty on employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that in the course of conducting their undertaking, employees and members of the public are not put at risk The management of Health and safety at Work regulations 1999 requires an employer, and a self-employed person, to undertake a risk assessment of the tree stock on the land which forms part of the undertaking. Breach of the duty under the act, can give rise to a criminal prosecution against the employer.

11. How to discharge these responsibilities and duties National Tree Safety Group (NTSG) published in 2011 a suite of guidance documents under the umbrella title of Common sense risk management of trees. • Trees provide a wide variety of benefits to society (Ecosystem Services); amenity, visual, ecological, environmental and social. • Trees naturally loose branches or fall over • The overall risk to human safety is very low • Tree owners have a duty of care • Tree owners need to take a balanced and proportionate approach to tree safety management.

12. Objectives Trees form a significant part of the overall environment and landscape within which we live. The management of risk is only one part of a wider suite of objectives for the trees and the land on which they grow: • Identify and control risk. • Comply with legal and regulatory requirements • Improve confidence and trust

13. Hazard / Risk • A hazard is something that can cause harm (a branch or tree falling). • A risk is the combination of an event happening and the consequences of that event (is it likely and what will it hit).

14. Tree risk in context The risk of death caused by trees is 1:10 million Non-fatal accident and emergency statistics show the following admissions: • Leisure related injuries 2.9 million • Footballs 262,000 • Swings 10,900 • Wheelie bins 2,200 • Struck by trees 55 • Struck by a tree 55.

15. Managing risks Tree management or lack of it should not expose people to a significant likelihood of death, permanent disability or serious injury. Accidents do happen! Significant winds in excess of force 7 (39 mph) cause twigs to break off trees) Such risks are tolerable in the following conditions: • There is a low likelihood • Hazards are clear to users • There are obvious benefits • Further reducing risks would disproportionately impact on benefits • There are reasonably practical ways to manage the risk

16. Proportionate tree risk management Management decisions and practice should cover three essential aspects: • Zoning: considering the location of tree stock in relation to people or property • Tree inspection: assessing obvious tree defects • Managing risk at an acceptable level: identifying, prioritising and undertaking safety work according to level of risk.

17. Zoning A method of defining areas of land on which, or adjacent to where, the trees are growing according to the levels of use or the value of the property. This may be as straightforward as two zones High risk zones Railways, busy roads, car parks, play grounds, emergency service access routes, etc. Low risk zones. Open countryside, woodlands, inaccessible land etc. .

18. Inspections Trees in high risk areas require an inspection regime. There are three types of inspection: ● Informal observations. ● Formal inspections ● Detailed inspections

19. Reducing risk Other means by which the risk can be managed or reduced such as: ● deterring informal parking beneath trees; damage to roots may not; be apparent for many years and increases risk of failure; ● re-locating facilities such as play equipment, seats, picnic tables, barbecues, information boards, commemorative plaques, hides, fishing platforms, horse jumps, feeding centres etc.; ● re-routing paths and tracks; ● redesigning mown paths in areas of long grass; ● placing structures and assembly points beyond the falling range of trees; ● managing the habitat around a tree by: planting brambles and thorny shrubs; using logs or piles of deadwood; allowing grass to grow, leaving brushwood around the tree; ● changing the area’s use, eg to hay meadow and for grazing; ● temporary exclusion in adverse weather conditions.

20. Whilst the end comes to us all, we should never forget that rather than “Ashes to Ashes”, there is the possibility of “Life after Death”.