9 December 2012 Last updated at 04:31 ET

Ash dieback: Case confirmed in west Cornwall

Ash is the third most abundant broadleaf tree in the UK

The tree disease ash dieback has been confirmed at a site in west Cornwall.

The case of the fungus, near Camborne, has been listed on the Forestry Commission's website as an infection confirmed on a "recently planted site".

The commission said the tree was not in the wider environment, such as established woodland.

Across the UK, the disease has been identified in 155 sites in the wider countryside, 119 areas where ash trees were recently planted and 17 nurseries.

Ash is the third most abundant species of broadleaf tree within the UK's woodlands.

Experts have warned that if ash dieback became widely established, the impact could be as serious as the 1970s outbreak of Dutch elm disease, which saw millions of trees destroyed.