The Forestry Commission said cases of Chalara dieback had been confirmed in trees in East Anglia and do not appear to be associated with recent plantings of nursery-supplied plants, which the disease has been restricted to since it was first recorded in the UK earlier this year.
Other countries, including Denmark and Poland, have had their ash tree populations decimated by the disease. The UK government is preparing to impose restrictions on imports and movements of ash plants as early as next week.
Forestry Commission staff have been redeployed to survey woods and forests in East Anglia, as well as other regions.
“Scientists from our own Forest Research agency are also carrying out diagnostic tests on a number of other samples from established woodland trees in East Anglia with symptoms indicative of this disease, and we expect the results within a few days,” said Dr John Morgan, head of the commission’s plant health service.
He said it was possible the East Anglia outbreak could be an isolated one. “As we gather more evidence from surveys we will be able to develop our long-term strategy for dealing with this disease,” he added.
