EAB Exposure Risk Increases In Summer

As the summer tourism season gets into full swing, don’t be an unwitting spreader of the “Green Menace” known as the emerald ash borer (EAB).This pest is now in 21 states and two Canadian provinces. This means you have an excellent chance of encountering EAB, especially if you’re camping or doing something near forests or parks. You may bring this tiny insect home without even knowing it until it attacks the ash trees in your yard and your neighbors’ yards.Here are a few precautions you can take as you travel this summer:

• Don’t move firewood –Be sure to buy firewood near your campsite or from a firewood vendor who is certified, and don’t bring any back unless it’s certified. There’s a quarantine against bringing uncertified wood into New York State, so burn it where you bought it.

• Recognize the signs of infestation –The EAB adult is green, skinny and about as long as a penny. Even if you don’t see these adults, examine firewood. Remove some or all of the bark. If it’s infested, you’ll see the galleries the larvae carve just under the bark as seen in photo.

• Pre-treatment programs – There are ways to protect ash trees with a preventive treatment before they become infested with EAB. Call our office for more information.

Scientists say those ash trees destroyed by EAB create a damaging effect on the eco-system and can even impact your property value. The International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) says that EAB destruction has already cost municipalities, property owners and the green industry tens of millions of dollars.