EAB, and the next 100 days?

by Kathleen Preece

While the nation is talking recession, there are some folks talking very seriously about a “progression.” They are advising the citizens of Minnesota to pay some serious attention to that progression—a progression called the march of the emerald ash borer.

This is not a parade set to the high stepping rhythm of a high school band. Rather, it’s a death march, led by a small, shiny green insect heading directly to the approximately 867 million ash trees growing in the state’s woodlands and urban areas.

The emerald ash borer, or “EAB” as it is referred to by professional managers of the state’s public and private woodlands, was first discovered keeping residence in the U.S. in 2002 in southeastern Michigan. It was also found that year in Windsor, Ontario. It is thought that this pest was introduced into the U.S. at least 10 years before it was discovered, probably in wood crating, pallets, or similar packing material shipped to Michigan.

EAB belongs to a group of insects known as “metallic wood-boring beetles” (Buprestidae). This beetle is a long way from home. A native to eastern Asia, it has subsequently been found in Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Wisconsin, and West Virginia; but not in Minnesota – yet.

Ash trees become infested when adult EAB beetles lay eggs on the bark. The eggs hatch into larvae which tunnel into a layer between the bark and the wood, called the phloem. This is the part of the tree where water and nutrients move. The larvae tunnels disrupt this movement, eventually killing the tree. EAB does not seem to discriminate between healthy or stressed trees in its attack.

This is serious stuff for Minnesotans to consider. All ash trees native to Minnesota, including green, black, and white, are susceptible to infestation by EAB. Ash are the fourth most abundant trees species in the state’s woodlands and are also a prominent part of our urban, or communities’ trees. In Big Fork, for example, ash comprise eight percent of all trees in the community; in Eveleth, 15 percent; Deer River, 24 percent; Grand Rapids, 30 percent, and in International Falls and Hibbing, ash comprise 50 percent of community trees.

Although EAB has yet to make its appearance in Minnesota, Jana Albers, forest health specialist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, says it is “only a matter of ‘when,’ and not ‘if’ the insect will appear.” The state’s forest health specialists have teamed up with neighboring state and national forest health gurus to plan for EAB in a manner that rivals the current national Administration’s efforts to deal with national and global crises.

These concerned specialists have set up their own versions of defense, education, homeland security, and transportation administrative cabinets. Albers explains that the Minnesota Department of Agriculture is the lead agency, with the Minnesota DNR, U.S. Forest Service, and University of Minnesota serving as cooperators. They are providing forest management guides, talking to communities and chamber of commerce, working on Web portals, visiting parks and campgrounds, and dealing with internal operational orders, all in an effort to slow the eventual progress of the shiny green insect into Minnesota.

The Minnesota Emerald Ash Borer Readiness Plan guides actions aimed at minimizing the impact of the insect in Minnesota through education and training, and developing political support to ensure that there is adequate funding and regulation in place.

The Minnesota Emerald Ash Borer Response Plan (www.mda.state.mn.us/news/publications/pestsplants/pestmanagement/eab_responseplan.pdf ensure there is efficient communication and coordination in the event EAB is detected in Minnesota.

“Preparing for Emerald Ash Borer in Minnesota" is a set of recommendations to help landowners and managers make decisions about planting ash, removing ash, and treating it with insecticide.

What can you do about preventing the progression of EAB in Minnesota? Albers has one request: “Promise you won’t move firewood.” Serving as a unique stimulus package for EAB, firewood harbors the ash larvae and, when transported from an infected area to an uninfected area it allows for the spread of the insect. As Albers points out, “EAB is a slow moving insect – except when it gets help from us.” Its natural dispersal rate is just one-half to two miles annually. Transmission is has accelerated due to the inadvertent transportation of larvae-infested materials like firewood.

Make and keep some promises. Albers advises:

• Keep firewood in the county where you buy it.
• Know where that firewood comes from; do not accept it from EAB-infested states.
• Never bring firewood along with you when you go camping or hunting.
• Buy firewood at your destination.
• Burn firewood where you buy it.
• Burn every piece of firewood by May 1, before the beetle can escape to cause more devastation.
• Tell others not to move firewood.

Moving firewood and other ash wood materials in areas infested with emerald ash borer is regulated by the infested states and federal government. Shipments of ash nursery trees and ash logs with bark are now regulated. Quarantine areas have been established; transporting firewood outside of the quarantined areas is illegal.

Click here to determine whether or not is it acceptable to move firewood within or between states.

If you own woodlands in Minnesota, what does the threat of EAB mean to you and to your forest? Should you harvest your ash? Let nature take its course? Professional foresters say there are no easy or right answers. Those answers depend on the condition of the woods you own, your objectives for your property, and other reasons.

If you suspect an infested tree, contact your local DNR or county extension office.
You may also contact the USDA Emerald Ash Borer Hotline toll-free at 1-866-322-4512. In Minnesota, if you suspect you may have EAB in your ash trees, call 1-888-545-6684 (Arrest-the-Pest Hotline).