The Emerald
Ash Borer (EAB) has quickly become one of the most destructive exotic
forest insects ever introduced into the United States. It only attacks
and kills green, white, blue and black ash as well as several horticultural
ash varieties. It kills both healthy and stressed trees.
 EAB
is present in 16 Ohio counties, thirteen of them being quarantined.
Once an area is quarantined, strict Ohio Department of Agriculture
regulations are set in place with heavy fines being charged to violators.
EAB has been moving east and is only 30 miles west of the City of
Lakewood. The City of Vermillion is under State quarantine.
There is no cure for this
pest. Once it has been identified, an eradication program is put
into place. Basically the plan is to remove and dispose of ALL ash
trees within a ½ mile radius of the known source.
There are NO federal or state monies to do this work. Also once
quarantined extra money is needed to process the removed ash trees.
So there are two things we can do. Nothing and
wait until the borer arrives, or be proactive and institute an Emerald
Ash Borer Management Plan. This plan is a written document outlining
our City's objectives and approaches we will use to meet the anticipated
impact of the EAB on our urban forest.
Lakewood has 397 ash trees on its streets and in
our parks. Systemically removing and replacing trees prior to a
positive EAB find would save thousands of dollars in disposal cost
alone.
This action would upset the residents by removing
what appear to be healthy trees. An education program should be
in place before the first tree is removed. While our management
plan addresses trees on City property, there are a lot of ash trees
on private property. EAB will attack and kill these trees also.
Dead and dying ash trees not promptly removed by the property owner
may pose a safety concern to adjacent private and public sites.
A few questions come to mind.
• Will the City remove or subsidize the property owner
in removing infected or dead ash trees?
• Will the Building Department cite homeowners for infected
or dead ash trees?
• Will private tree contractors follow the guidelines
for proper disposal?
In conclusion EAB is under a great deal of scientific scrutiny now.
New information and discoveries will improve our ability to detect,
control and eradicate this beetle.
Click here to read
the complete City of Lakewood Emerald Ash Borer Report.
For more information, visit the Ohio Department
of Agriculture website at
www.ohioagriculture.gov/eab. |
