CHENANGO COUNTY – With the arrival of spring, statewide concern is growing over the impact of the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), an invasive, exotic insect that quickly kills all ash trees once it colonizes in an area.
Beginning May 1, a newly proposed quarantine to help contain EAB will go into effect to cease the spread of the tree-killing insect. In February, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the state Department of Agriculture and Markets suggested the quarantine include the entire state south of the New York State Thruway - including Chenango County - which totals 22 counties, excluding Rockland, Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk counties and New York City.
The Emerald Ash Borer is a shiny green bug, smaller than a dime, that first made its way into the U.S. from Asia. Its dissemination has been closely monitored since its first appearance in the U.S. in Michigan in 2002. In the last ten years, it has been found in 18 states and killed off tens of millions of ash trees, most of which were planted to replace stately elms killed 80 years ago by a different invasive insect.
According to Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chenango County’s forestry specialist Rich Taber, the thought that EAB will have more of a presence in the area is reason for property owners and local officials to be alarmed.
“Once that borer gets into the area, it will devestate ash trees,” he said, noting that EAB have yet to be fond in Chenango County but were found in Cattaraugus County in 2009. It’s not a matter of if they will spread across the state, but when, he added.
Approximately 60 percent of Chenango County is forest land - part of nearly 18 million acres of forest land in New York State. Of that, 7 percent is comprised of ash trees, Taber pointed out. “It’s going to be a tremendous hit on our woodlands in New York State. Whenever you remove 7 percent of an ecosystem, there’s going to be long-term consequences.”
Perhaps most burdensome will be the cost to remove ash trees should EAB have more of a presence this year. As ash trees die and decay, the cost to have them removed can become costly for landowners and municipalities, explained Taber. “When they start decaying, it will be a safety issue, a disposal issue and an expensive issue,” he said. “It’s good for communities to have an action plan.”
In the meantime, the DEC is encouraging EAB constraint efforts based on extensive meetings of municipal officials, utility companies, environmentalists, forest landowners, farmers, campground owners and wood using businesses across the state. Among these efforts, a restriction on the transport of firewood that could lead to the spread of EAB.
As a precaution agains the introduction and spread of EAB in 2008, New York adopted regulations that banned untreated firewood from entering the state and restricted interstate movement of untreated firewood to no more tha a 50-mile radius from its source. The DEC will continue and enforce outreach in this effort throughout the year.
Although EAB has been of concern in recent years, Taber said the bigger issue is the possibility of a more threatening species further down the road. “Everything related in an ecosystem is related to everything else. While ash trees make up a small component of New York State forests, the increase of invasive species and pathogens make us question what species may target maples, red maples and sugar maples. That truely would be devastating.”