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ithaca
| 8/19/2009 10:01:00 AM Email this article • Print this article |
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Mark Whitmore, a specialist in the Department of Natural Resources at Cornell, poses in front of a local ash tree while displaying an ash leaf. (Photo by Rachel Philipson) |
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Cornell specialist: Invasive beetle species poses risk to ash trees
Taryn Thompson
Reporter
A destructive insect has been wiping out ash trees across the Great Lakes since 2002, and has now found its way into New York state. An invasive beetle native to eastern Asia, the emerald ash borer can kill all species of ash in North America.
The larvae feed on the inner bark of ash trees, disrupting the tree's ability to transport water and nutrients, a pattern that has the potential to cause severe ecological damage, not to mention it's impact on local economy, according to Cornell Cooperative Extension.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed the first occurrence of EAB in this area on June 17 in Randolph. Because state officials expect EAB populations to spread, the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation recently established a quarantine encompassing the infected counties of Cattaraugus and Chautauqua.
It will restrict the movement of ash trees, ash products, and firewood - from all wood species - in order to limit the potential introduction of EAB to other areas of the state. The state's quarantine order requires restrictions on the movement of lumber from any tree species into and out of the state from which it came.
"That's the most common method of long distance dispersal of the emerald ash borer," said Mark Whitmore, a specialist in the Department of Natural Resources at Cornell University.
"On it's own, it really can't fly very far very quickly," he said, adding that estimates range from one to three kilometers. "It's the long distance transport on firewood and nursery stalk movement that's the most important vector. That's why it spread."
Whitmore said it's a good idea to limit movement of wood products in response to any invasive bug that forests face. But EAB is the most immediate threat, he said.
"We need to instill in [people] this notion that it just isn't good to move firewood anymore," Whitmore said. "When you go camping or hunting, acquire your wood locally and burn it locally."
Whitmore said that ash is common in Tompkins County and one of the most important components of local forests.
"On average, the percent of ash in the hardwood forests of New York State is near 10 percent, but it's more in the Southern Tier," he said. "There's an estimate that there are over 900 million ash trees in New York State."
Ash is most abundant along streams and rivers, in northern wetlands, in the extensive upland forests of New York's Southern Tier, and in second growth woodlands of abandoned agricultural fields.
"When old farmlands go back to forests, a large population of those fields turn into ash," Whitmore said.
"Ash is an early successional species found in areas where trees are moving in," he said. "Ash starts the process of forest regeneration, and it's hard to quantify the value of that."
Aside from this ecological loss, another might come at the expense of homeowners and their lush backyards.
"A lot of the threes in people's backyards are ash," he said. "There will be thousands of dollars associated with the removal and replacement of urban trees," if infected.
Ash is also a very popular city street tree, because it grows quickly and provides great shade.
"Many cities around here have a lot of ash," Whitmore said, "so they need to make plans for what they're going to do when this beetle gets here."
Ithaca City Forester Andrew Hillman was unavailable for comment, but Whitmore did say that Hillman has been prioritizing the diversification of city tree species.
"We don't have any affective area-wide controls," he said. "Scientists are working on it like crazy. The whole strategy that all of the agencies have adopted is basically to slow this thing down by the time necessary to do the research and get an effective control technique."
Whitmore added that there are effective chemical controls available, but that they only work on individual trees for short periods of time.
Horticultural and specialty industries that rely heavily on ash, such as baseball bat and tool handle manufacturers, will experience heavy setbacks from the necessary quarantine regulations and the potential complete loss of ash, the CCE Web site said.
"Ash is a fairly specialized wood, used for a number of things, and it has a well-entrenched specialty industry," Whitmore said. "It will be a terrible loss because it's hard to replace ash's specialty uses."
The EAB is about 100 miles away at this point, Whitmore said, and its estimated date of arrival is unknown.
"This thing will come and we'll know about it well ahead of time," he said. "We only need to start worrying when it's 10 miles away, but people need to be aware to slow the spread."
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Suicide has recently come to Ithaca in a very public, and at times controversial, way. This past academic year, after three years with no suicides, Cornell experienced what is known in the scientific community as a "suicide cluster." OK, so maybe you're like me and you thought this whole JetBlue flight attendant story was good for maybe one news cycle.  |
