Two men have been fined after willow trees were illegally cut down at Golden Meadow Mill in Castletown.

Tree surgeon Christopher Carl Preston, aged 30, of Main Road, Colby, was fined £3,750 after admitting five counts of cutting down a tree without a licence.

Site owner Cornelius James O’Sullivan, aged 53, of Main Street, Willoughby, Waterleys, Leicestershire, admitted five counts of permitting another to cut down a tree without a licence and was fined £5,000.

Prosecutor Barry Swain said 52 trees had been cut down, of which 15 were considered to have been cut down in breach of the 1993 Tree Prevention Act. The act stipulates that only trees below a stated size are allowed to be felled without a licence.

Mr Swain was sympathetic, saying that O’Sullivan had over the years tried to re-establish the site as it was subject to a preservation order and he had spent a considerable amount of money on it.

The prosecutor said the work had been done with the good intention of returning the pond there to its original use and that had O’Sullivan and Preston applied for a licence it would most likely have been granted.

An alternative disposal for the incident had been sought but the scale of the enterprise had determined that the matter had to proceed.

The court heard that, on November 14, a member of the public reported the matter to DEFA, saying trees to the west of Poulsom Park had been cut down. DEFA representatives found 15 were over the size limit.

Advocate Peter Russell estimated that O’Sullivan has spent around £110,000 on the site, which included grants of £30,000. Mr Russell said: ’Self-seeding willows had grown and the integrity of the mill pond was in danger.

’The rooting trees were going to cause damage so he employed an experienced tree surgeon to carry out the work.

’This was a control measure to try to prevent further damage being done by the trees while plans were being made on how to restore the site to its former glory.

’The area is fairly barren of trees and is on private property. Unless you were in Poulsom Park and trying to look over to where the pond is you wouldn’t be aware of them.’

Advocate Jim Travers said: ’Mr Preston has 15 years’ experience in this industry and this is his first transgression. He is regularly instructed by DEFA for this type of work.

’There was no reason to avoid making the application, he assumed it was not necessary. Because of Manx National Heritage’s involvement and approval of ongoing works he assumed it was not a scenario that required a licence.’

High Bailiff Jayne Hughes said: ’The circumstances are far from usual. These were not offences committed for profit. But Mr O’Sullivan should have made the necessary checks.

’Mr Preston also has to take responsibility. As a professional tree surgeon he should have known better.’