Date: Thursday 14 May 2020
Time: 18:30 - 20:30
Location:School of Earth and Environment
University of Leeds
Leeds LS2 9JT
Email:
Please be aware this meeting has now been cancelled due to COVID-19. Please keep updated on our event website.
SPEAKER| Dr Louise Hill, Defra
ABSTRACT| Tree planting is widely recognised as an essential weapon in the fight against climate change, as increasing ambition of government commitments for tree planting have shown. However, invasive tree pests and diseases, often introduced inadvertently by human activity, threaten to undermine these efforts. Diseases such as ash dieback and sweet chestnut blight are driving increased tree mortality rates, releasing carbon and turning carbon sinks into sources. Simultaneously, tree pests and diseases complicate and threaten the supply chains that provide nursery stock required for meeting planting targets. What can we do to meet these interlinked challenges?
