Replanting scheme aims to create diverse woodlands after larches are felled

Lancashire County Council have been informed that they will receive a Statutory Plant Health Notice from the Forestry Commission later this month. This is a legal notice, requiring infected trees to be felled and is part of a national approach to stop the disease from spreading to other areas. 

The larches will be replaced with a diverse range of native species including birch, holly, mountain ash and oak, in the first available planting season after the clearance works, if a recent grant application to fund this is approved.

Unfortunately, the trees are infected with Ramorum disease, an incurable type of water mould, which causes extensive damage to, and kills, affected trees. It does not affect humans or animals. Since 2009, more than 12,000 acres of woodlands with larch trees have had to be felled in the UK. 

Work is planned to begin early in 2025 to remove trees covering up to 15 hectares (37 acres) from the sites at Facit and Shawforth.  All of the income from the sale of timber will be used to recover some of the high cost of clearance, replanting and maintenance on these difficult sites.

While the loss of the trees will have a temporary impact on the landscape, a plan is underway to plant more trees if a grant bid is accepted. The replanting scheme would provide longer-term benefits, because the mixed native broadleaf species which will replace them will provide a better habitat for wildlife and be more suited to the landscape and character of the area.

Councillor Shaun Turner, cabinet member for Environment and Climate Change, said: "While it is sad to lose so many trees at one time, Lancashire County Council must play its part in preventing this damaging disease from spreading to other parts of the country.

"Unfortunately, we are set to receive a legal notice that requires us to fell the trees. It is important to remove as many trees as we can before new spores begin to spread again next summer, so we want to start the work as soon as possible.

"The plan for recovery will ensure that the new woodland will be better for the environment than the larches we are losing because it will be more resilient to climate change, provide a more appropriate habitat for wildlife and will sit better in the landscape than the conifers."

Councillor Scott Smith, county councillor for Whitworth and Bacup, said: "It will be sad to see so many trees felled here in Facit and Shawforth, but it is clear that the county council are left with no choice.

"I am pleased to have been able to work with officers to ensure we keep our countryside beautiful and look forward to seeing these planted and growing as soon as the time is right."

Find out more about the disease here: Phytophthora ramorum - Tree Disease - Woodland Trust