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 Tree-killing beetle heads for New York

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Saturday, July 28th 2007, 6:48 PM

The emerald ash borer, a half-inch-long invasive insect that has destroyed an estimated 20 million ash trees nationally over the past five years.

ALBANY — A beetle that ravaged stands of ash trees in southern Michigan has moved through Pennsylvania to within striking distance of New York's border.

So authorities are asking campers and others to limit moving firewood into or through the state and to beware of the emerald ash borer, a half-inch-long invasive insect that has destroyed an estimated 20 million ash trees nationally over the past five years.

 

The state Department of Environmental Conservation said the first line of defense is using only firewood harvested locally and avoiding bringing wood long distances to campgrounds and parks.

"We're encouraging people to buy firewood locally," Doug Bernhard, a DEC regional forester told the Elmira Star-Gazette. "Don't move it more than 40 or 50 miles if they are going camping."

He said the loss of ash trees would be a blow to hardwood mills. The tree has also been widely used in urban plantings.

New York's initial response will be an education campaign, possibly followed by regulations, Bernhard said.

On Tuesday, Pennsylvania banned most firewood imported from outside the state in a bid to slow the spread of the ash borer and other pests.

The ban applies to all types of wood intended for outdoor or indoor fires. Kiln-dried, packaged firewood that is clearly marked "USDA Certified" and bears the producer's name and address is exempt from the ban.

Last month, the state restricted the movement of all ash tree material, from nursery stock to wood chips, and quarantined all hardwood firewood in four western Pennsylvania counties.

Authorities say the ash borer, which is native to China, probably arrived in the United States in wood used in packing crates. It was first discovered in the U.S. in the Detroit area in 2002 and has also turned up in Ohio, Indiana, Maryland and Illinois.

The DEC is recommending the packaged bundles of wood that have been kiln dried, a process that kills the insects, or buying wood taken from near where it will be used., a half-inch-long invasive insect that has destroyed an estimated 20 million ash trees nationally over the past five years.

ALBANY — A beetle that ravaged stands of ash trees in southern Michigan has moved through Pennsylvania to within striking distance of New York's border.

So authorities are asking campers and others to limit moving firewood into or through the state and to beware of the emerald ash borer, a half-inch-long invasive insect that has destroyed an estimated 20 million ash trees nationally over the past five years.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation said the first line of defense is using only firewood harvested locally and avoiding bringing wood long distances to campgrounds and parks.

"We're encouraging people to buy firewood locally," Doug Bernhard, a DEC regional forester told the Elmira Star-Gazette. "Don't move it more than 40 or 50 miles if they are going camping."

He said the loss of ash trees would be a blow to hardwood mills. The tree has also been widely used in urban plantings.

New York's initial response will be an education campaign, possibly followed by regulations, Bernhard said.

On Tuesday, Pennsylvania banned most firewood imported from outside the state in a bid to slow the spread of the ash borer and other pests.

The ban applies to all types of wood intended for outdoor or indoor fires. Kiln-dried, packaged firewood that is clearly marked "USDA Certified" and bears the producer's name and address is exempt from the ban.

Last month, the state restricted the movement of all ash tree material, from nursery stock to wood chips, and quarantined all hardwood firewood in four western Pennsylvania counties.

Authorities say the ash borer, which is native to China, probably arrived in the United States in wood used in packing crates. It was first discovered in the U.S. in the Detroit area in 2002 and has also turned up in Ohio, Indiana, Maryland and Illinois.

The DEC is recommending the packaged bundles of wood that have been kiln dried, a process that kills the insects, or buying wood taken from near where it will be used.

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