‘That tree needs to go, it’s affecting the newts’ outdoor education centre near Newport tells planners
An education centre near Newport wants to chop down a pine tree because its needles are making a wildlife-rich pond more acidic.
Officials at the Sandwell Council-operated Edgmond Hall Residential Education Centre, in Edgmond, say the pond’s wildlife includes great crested newts.
They have told planners at Telford & Wrekin Council that the pine tree is overhanging a “species-rich wildlife pond, including great crested newts” and it needs felling to ground level.”
They add: “It needs removal as the needles are impacting on the pH of the water.”
Officials say that the tree is roughly 30cm in diameter but there are “several other species of the same variety in the vicinity.”
Multiple trees have been planted this year from a Woodland Trust pack, the application form to the council reads.
A period of public consultation has begun and comments can be made on the Telford & Wrekin Council planning website.
