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Emerald Ash Borer
On March 30, 2012, the Illinois Department of Agriculture confirmed that the Village of Lakemoor has an infestation of the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB). The infestation will affect hundreds of Ash trees on both public and privately owned property within the Village over the next several years. Therefore, we wish to make you aware of this unfortunate discovery in the event that you have existing Ash trees located on or around your property.
The first symptom of EAB infestation in ash tree(s) is the thinning of leaves in the canopy. Other visual symptoms include woodpecker damage ( missing bark or holes) and formation of new branches (sprouting) along the larger limbs of the tree. If an ash tree has been infested for multiple years, new branches will begin to sprout on the main stem of the tree as far down as the base of the tree to make up for the earlier loss of leaves in the canopy.
The emerald ash borer (EAB) is a small metallic green beetle native to Asia. It was first confirmed on March 31, 2012. The adult emerald ash borer emerges in May-June and the female lays eggs in bark crevices and between layers of bark. The eggs hatch in one to two weeks and larvae bore into the tree where they chew the inner bark and phloem, creating serpentine galleries as they feed. This cuts off the flow of water and nutrients in the tree, causing dieback and death.
What is the Village doing to address the threat?
The Village has approved the Village of Lakemoor Emerald Ash Borer Control Program. The objective of the Plan is to minimize the destructive effects of Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) on Lakemoor's ash tree population. As part of this plan, the Village is working with "McGinty Brothers" company who has made a street-by-street review of our parkway trees. If you see those cars/trucks in and around your area, it may be the arborists looking for and logging the locations of infected trees.
As of May 1, 2012, the Village will remove 216 and treat 37 infected ash trees. All trees in the parkway that are scheduled for removal shall be marked with orange paint before there removal. All trees that are scheduled for removal are showing significant signs of Emerald Ash Borer damage and/or pose some other type of threat to person or vehicle traffic. Should you have any questions please contact the Public Works Department at publicworks@lakemoor.net or call (815) 385-2936.
What can I do to address the problem?
At this time, property owners have two options: outright removal or treatment of their trees. Hertain insecticides have proven to be effective in treating or preventing infestation if the damage to the tree is not too extensive. Contact an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist to see what options you have for treatment. A list of certified arborists can be found at this web address: http://www.isa-arbor.com/faca/findArborist.aspx.
Please note that treatment, depending on the insecticide used, may be effective for one or two years and then will need to be reapplied and will be a long-term commitment. Thus treatment may be more costly than outright removal. Further, if your tree does die, the Village may require you to remove it in order to protect the public.
If you are having a tree removed, make sure that your contractor has signed an EAB compliance agreement with the State of Illinois Department of Agriculture. This agreement outlines how to handle infested wood to slow the spread of EAB.
Public Meeting
The Village will be hosting a public meeting regarding the Emerald Ash Borer with guest speakers from the Illinois Department of Agriculture and the contractual Village Arborist from McGinty Brothers. The information is listed below:
Emerald Ash Borer Meeting
June 4, 2012 @ 7pm
Village Hall, 234 Rand Road
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