THIS BEAUTIFUL drone video captures 2,000 trees shimmering in the frosty morning sun: each one was planted by a volunteer.

Soon they will be gone.

As part of its £120m Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme, the Environment Agency has revealed it will have to cut down huge swathes of Kennington's beloved Kendall Copse which villagers planted in 2008.

Oxford Mail:

The agency has already promised to replace them in its environmentally-friendly scheme, but Roger Gelder, secretary of the Friends of Kendall Copse, wanted to preserve his fellow volunteers' work for posterity – and got stunning results.

He asked fellow villager and drone enthusiast Gordon Buxton if they could use his tiny aircraft to capture the beauty of the copse just south of Oxford southern by-pass to the north of the village.

So, early one frosty morning this month, the pair went out flying: the result was a moving portrait of a thousand crystal trees glistening in an icy forest.

Oxford Mail:

Mr Buxton, 48, a software company director, said: "I don't think we've got any problem with the need for the flood channel – Roger just wanted to get an aerial view to show people where it would be going.

"I think he also wanted it as a historical record if the copse has to be cut down.

"We spotted that morning was going to be very frosty and very still so we met up and went out.

Oxford Mail:

"It turned out to be very nice, picturesque stuff – it was just so nice when we got the video and were watching it back."

The massive tract of South Oxford which now includes the southern bypass was bought by Oxford City Council in 1920 from the Church of England.

For years, the patch which is now Kendall Copse was used as a landfill site, until, in 2008, the council offered it to the people of Kennington as a nature haven.

Oxford Mail:

The landfill remains just beneath the surface were also near the top of Roger Gelder's list of concerns when he heard the EA planned to run a small stream through the ground and into the river Thames.

He questioned how the agency would protect the watercourse from the surrounding pollution, but engineers have said it should not be a problem.

In a statement to the Oxford Mail, spokeswoman Gauri Desai said: "Unfortunately, in order to construct the channel and the culvert, it is likely that the majority of the trees in the eastern half of the copse will need to be cleared and we have agreed that new trees will be planted to replace them once works are completed.

Oxford Mail:

"We are aware that the copse is on top of an old landfill site and have therefore already undertaken a detailed site investigation to investigate this further.

"We will design the new channel so there is no physical connection between the waste and the water.

"During construction we will also be taking the necessary precautions to avoid any potential pollutants from entering the watercourses in the area."