AN eagle-eyed Truro resident stepped in at the last minute after workers from Cornwall Council offshoot company Cormac were about to needlessly cut down a mature cherry tree in a conservation area.

A spokesperson for the civil engineering contractor has admitted the near miss was an error and has apologised.

Jackie Dash, who is a member of Cornwall Climate and Nature Hub, was in her home near Baynards Close in the city on May 1 when she noticed the workers about to fell the huge tree, which is currently in full bloom. They had already taken off some lower branches.

The tree is in a conservation area and is therefore protected unless it is dead, dying or posing an immediate risk. When Jackie challenged the Cormac crew about what they were doing she was shown instructions on a computer system saying “fell the cherry tree”.

When she asked why, a worker pointed out there some fungal growth on the trunk and it meant the tree was posing an imminent risk of falling. However, after consulting their supervisor, the crew stopped the felling work.

The following morning Jackie was visited by a Cormac tree officer and it transpired that far from posing an immediate risk, the tree shouldn’t have been chopped down at all, but instead sycamore suckers had to be removed from around its base and eco-plugs inserted so they couldn’t grow again. Jackie was told a computer error was to blame and it wasn’t an isolated incident.

Debs Newman, spokesperson for the Stop the Chop! campaign group, said of the error: “It’s bad enough that a Cormac crew should turn up to destroy a perfectly healthy cherry tree in full bloom, but to then say that it is being felled because of a fungus issue, which turns out to be a red herring, is reprehensible. It’s essential that all tree works are halted until this ‘computer error’ is resolved”.

When asked for her opinion on the near-miss, Jackie had a very simple message: “Stand up for trees!” She is urging people to attend a nature and climate event at Falmouth’s Dracaena Centre on May 18 from 1.30pm to 3.30pm when the very issue of protecting trees and nature will be discussed.

A spokesperson for Cormac said: “The tree works at Baynards Close were being undertaken by Cormac on behalf of Cornwall Housing. Works were required to remove self-seeded sycamore saplings to help to protect the cherry tree, but a key piece of information was missing from a newly implemented management system which suggested the cherry tree was to be felled. Cormac has introduced measures to ensure this system miscommunication cannot occur again in the future.

“Cormac are grateful to the resident for intervening and can confirm that while one stem of the tree has been heavily pruned, some new shoots remain intact, and it is hoped the tree will recover. Further monitoring will take place to help ensure this is the case. In the meantime, we sincerely apologise for the unfortunate error that has occurred.”