Summary
Professor Adam Hart looks at the disease that has devastated ash trees in Europe – ash dieback. Over the last 20 years the fungus that causes ash dieback has been spreading westwards across the continent and last year it was found in the UK for the first time. At the moment there is no cure for the disease and only a tiny fraction of trees seem to be able to survive it. In this programme, he investigates the very latest scientific research into this deadly disease and asks if it will be enough to save this important species.
(Image: Professor Adam Hart in Trolleholm seed orchard in Sweden where ash dieback has infected many of the trees. Credit: BBC)
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I'm Rory Stewart and I grew up wanting to be a hero and I'm still fascinated by the ideas of heroism. |
| 0:08.9 | In my new series, I'm taking in the long sweep of history from Achilles to Zelensky and asking, what is a hero? |
| 0:16.2 | Simply doing your job, being a decent human being. |
| 0:20.0 | A true hero is someone who just kind of shines by their own light, |
| 0:23.9 | and that light is to be recognised by others. |
| 0:26.5 | The Long History of Heroism with me, Rory Stewart. |
| 0:29.5 | Listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:32.6 | Thank you for downloading from the BBC. |
| 0:35.4 | For details of our complete range of podcasts and our terms of use, |
| 0:39.5 | go to BBCworldservice.com slash podcasts. |
| 0:44.4 | Hello and welcome to Discovery on the BBC. |
| 0:47.3 | I'm Adam Hart, and over the next two programmes on Discovery, |
| 0:50.1 | I'm going to be investigating the major global threats to ash trees. |
| 0:54.3 | This week, I'll be looking at ash dieback, |
| 0:56.8 | a disease that's been killing ash trees in mainland Europe for more than 20 years. |
| 1:00.9 | It reached the United Kingdom this time last year, |
| 1:03.3 | and is now spreading across the country. |
| 1:05.8 | Scientists and foresters are trying to find out as much as they can |
| 1:09.0 | about the deadly fungus that's killing European ash trees. |
| 1:12.0 | But will this be enough to secure the long-term future of these noble trees? |
| 1:17.8 | I'm in Ashwell Thorpe Lowerwood, which is owned and managed by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust. |
| 1:22.2 | And the clues in the name, it's a Viking name. |
... |
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