Concerned residents of an Edinburgh suburb took to social media to express their displeasure at two trees being removed from their community.
But Edinburgh City Council said that the felling of the trees just off of Durar Drive are part of a scheme that looks to eliminate trees that are found to have Ash Dieback disease.
According to the council, the tree disease is caused by a fungal pathogen that is understood to kill around 80% of Ash trees across the UK.
As a result the previous council proposed a proactive approach to take immediate action in the capital.
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In Edinburgh, Ash Dieback has the potential to infect tens of thousands of Ash trees growing on both private and publicly maintained land.
Affected trees can quickly become brittle and may drop branches or fall over, which increases the risk of injury, property damage and road traffic accidents.
The council say that by adopting this risk-based approach, the principal aim is to prevent trees from falling and causing damage or harm.
A public information campaign was also launched by the previous administration to advise residents about the plan and to provide advice to private owners of affected trees.
They add that the removal of certain trees is “sadly unavoidable.”
One resident, who noticed one severely trimmed and another felled tree said: “I had no idea why they had been chopped down.
“The cherry blossom tree was in full bloom and wasn’t near any roads or anything, so I was quite annoyed.
“It is fair enough if they have Ash disease but the cherry blossom looked totally fine and if the other tree had a disease, then why have they not chopped the whole thing down instead of just the branches?”
The former culture and communities convener, Cllr Donald Wilson, said earlier this year that: “Ash dieback is unfortunately a problem for councils and landowners throughout the UK and it’s vital that we take action now to ensure trees are safe and to protect property and people.
“Our action plan lays out an approach for the next five to 10 years.
“Through this plan, we will spread the word to residents to make sure they have all the information they need if they own or maintain an Ash tree.
“In 2019, we became the first local authority to sign the tree charter and in doing so we pledged to keep nurturing, planting, celebrating, cherishing and increasing Edinburgh's trees.
“Through this action plan we will make sure we’re approaching this threat in the most proactive way and ensure we’ll make sure Edinburgh is on the front foot in tackling this unfortunate situation.”
