Press Release
ROYAL MILITARY ENGINEERS HELP THE GLENLIVET ESTATE WITH EMERGENCY TREE-FELLING WORKS
28 February 2007
Several trees that posed a safety hazard to motorists and the public on the B9008 road that passes through the Glenlivet Estate were felled today, 28 February 2007, using controlled explosives.
The four beech trees that partially hung across a stretch of the road at Downan and Bridgend of Livet were blown over during recent storms and could not be accessed by forestry machinery for safe removal.
The Glenlivet ranger team joined forces with the Royal Military Engineers, Grampian Police and foresters from Smiths Gore in Fochabers to control and carry out the low risk detonation.
The B9008 was temporarily closed until the felling and clearance works were completed. A 300m exclusion zone around the blast site was set up to ensure public safety at the time of the detonation.
The felling is part of essential works that are carried out regularly on the estate but due to the difficult terrain, the size of the trees and the angle at which the trees had fallen it was considered too dangerous to remove those using conventional methods.
Peter Jones, Senior Forest Manager for Smiths Gore, Woodland & Arboriculture department, said: “We undertook a survey to assess the safety of a number of trees in the area and decided that these four roadside trees could topple during another winter storm. It is an uncommon approach that we took as the area could not be accessed using standard forestry machinery.”
Andy Wells, The Crown Estate’s Forestry and Countryside Manager added: “To ensure public safety, The Crown Estate undertakes regular inspection of all roadside trees and those adjacent to pathways and public areas on our rural estates. Any trees considered to pose a hazard are either removed or tagged, and monitored depending on the risk they present.
“The unusual circumstances have meant that we couldn’t deal with the trees immediately and realise that this may have caused some inconvenience to local residents and businesses.
“We worked closely with the local police and military to minimise any disruption caused during this operation. We also took all necessary precautions to ensure the safety of road users.”
The local Glenlivet Primary School was evacuated at the time of the detonation as a precaution.
Further Information
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