Ash Borer, Pine Beetles Continue Spread
Emerald Ash Borer Spreads in Six More Counties

PROSPECT, CT  - The Emerald Ash Borer continues as a threat to lumber supplies, spreading in the U.S. and Canada. Pine Beetles, meanwhile, are spreading in British Columbia's interior, affecting 53 percent of the trees.

Ash Borer, Pine Beetles Continue SpreadIn Connecticut, an agricultural research station and the state's Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said the emerald ash borer was detected for the first time in the state. That brings the infestation - which started in 2002 - to a total of 16 states.

It was found in in Prospect, CT on July 16, 2012 and confirmed by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. Regulatory officials speculate it was in Naugatuck State Forest. The emerald ash borer is responsible for the death and decline of tens of millions of ash trees from the Miwest to New York State and south to Tennessee. In Connecticut forests, Ash makes up between 4 percent and 15 percent of the species.

Ash Borer, Pine Beetles Continue SpreadThe Canadian Food Inspection Agency earlier this month confirmed the presence of the emerald ash borer in Bruce County, Ontario, where it was discovered in a local park in Lucknow, three hours west of Toronto.The presence of EAB has now been confirmed in 26 Ontario counties, and in three areas in the province of Quebec.

Movement restrictions, which prohibit the movement of all ash materials-such as logs, branches and wood chips - and all species of firewood from the affected site - have been put in place. 

In British Columbia, meanwhile, the Pine Beetle has infected just over 18 million hectares of forests and an estimated 710 million cubic meters of pine trees (53 percent of all pine volume in the Province) are dead or dying, reports Wood Quarterly Report. The infestation is expected to reduce pine wood harvests by 20 percent in the long term.

Related report:

Arborjet treatment for tree insects

Company Says 'Trunk Injections' Protected 350,000 Trees in 2011
Updated: 03/03/2012 12:16:00 PM
WOBURN, MA - Arbotjet, a company focused on developing "effective and environmentally sound formulations and equipment" for combating the emerald ash borer, Asian long-horned beetle and other tree-killing insects, claims its products helped save some 350,000 trees in the United States last year. Read more 

 

 

Have something to say? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.