Major Wiltshire road closes to allow hundreds of diseased trees to be felled
A major road in Wiltshire has closed to allow hundreds of diseased trees to be felled.
The trees are on the Bowood Estate at Derry Hill, near Calne - on a stretch of the A4 between the junction of the A342 and the village of Studley.
The work is essential as the trees have ash dieback disease - leaving branches unstable and a potential risk to walkers and passing traffic.
The main road between Calne and Chippenham will close for 11 days as a result.
Up to 400 trees - mainly ash trees, infected with a fungus called ash dieback - will be chopped down.
The fungus arrived in the UK around eight years ago and, according to the Woodland Trust, is on course to kill 80% of all ash trees in the UK.
While work is going on, traffic will be diverted through the hamlet of Mile Elm but locals are concerned about the safety implications of having more traffic on smaller roads.
The wood from the ash tree can not be used for building due to the fungus it contains, so it will be chipped and turned into biomass fuel for energy instead.
The Bowood Estate says that for every tree chopped down, they will plant another native tree in the area.
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