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A council has ordered a pensioner to trim a historic 100m-long hedge because of health and safety fears.

Roy Dowson, 89, has been told he must cut back the 140-year-old yew bush following complaints from pedestrians.

They say the hedge , which is 2.5m (8.2ft) high, overhangs the pavement making it impossible for two people to walk side-by-side.

Construction firm boss Roy said: "The council have ordered me to cut the hedge back to 2ft, level with the wall and if I do that it will absolutely wreck it.

(Image: SWNS)

"I've been at the property for 40 years and the hedge was planted in 1880.

"I have the hedge trimmed every year and I think they're making a mountain out of a molehill."

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His daughter Heather Dowson added: "We think some anonymous villagers have complained that two people cannot walk side by side, but you can still do so.

"Yew is very slow growing and it will take a while to look any good if it's cut down."

(Image: SWNS)

The hedge was planted in 1880 and is a well-known feature of the sleepy village of Burton-by-Lincoln, Lincs., which features in the Domesday Book.

Officials from Lincolnshire County Council's highways department visited Roy at his home on Tuesday.

They ordered him to chop back the hedgerow level with the wall beneath it by February 24.

Councillor John Copeland, who sits the local Parish Council, is supporting Roy and says cutting back the popular bush would be "environmental vandalism".

(Image: SWNS)

He added: "You can easily walk along the path and this hedge is a lovely feature of the village that should be looked after.

"This is health and safety gone mad that will result in act of environmental vandalism."

But Lincolnshire County Council yesterday defended the decision and said the hedge was putting people at "risk from passing traffic".

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Highways Network Manager Paul Little said: "We have had to ask a resident in Burton to cut the yew hedge back outside his property to ensure the safety of pedestrians wishing to use the pavement.

"This is clearly putting them at unnecessary risk from passing traffic."