With the discovery in May of an emerald ash borer larvae infestation in St. Paul, officials say that there is cause for further precautions and monitoring in northern Minnesota.
“It would be a big concern if they get up here,” said John Snyder, biologist for Voyageurs National Park.
Snyder said that the park is urging the public to follow the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources approved list of local firewood vendors so that inadvertent contamination of the trees does not occur in this area.
Snyder said that while the adult bugs are capable of moving short distances on their own, they move quickest when transported on wood by car or rail.
Koochiching County Land Commissioner Dennis Hummitzsch said that in 2008, his group sold roughly 2,000 cords of ash at a total value of $12,000.
Hummitzsch said that the county is participating in state and federal survey programs, which are in a monitoring phase now.
Koochiching County has 124 million ash trees in forest land, according to totals from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, second only to St. Louis county. There are some 934 million ash trees in forest land statewide.
According to Steve Johnson, International Falls street commissioner, ash trees comprise up to 50 percent of trees along city streets and parks.
“You’re losing certain habitats and biodiversity,” Snyder said, if the ash trees were gone.
Because so few tree species are able to thrive in a black ash swamp, Snyder said the area may have trouble recuperating from a decline in ash. He said that this could lead to issues with other plant and animal species as well.
Adult beetles are metallic green and one-half inch long. Signs of their infestation include D-shaped holes and woodpecker damage, according to the emeraldashborer.info Web site. However, there are look-alikes and not all borers are dangerous to trees.
The larvae cause the ash trees that they bore into to slowly die by cutting off their supply of nutrients.
Sixty-seven affected trees have been removed from the St. Paul neighborhood where the emerald ash borers were confirmed, according to Mike Schommer, communications director for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. All infested trees were within one-half mile of the initial site.
Schommer estimated that more than 2,000 sticky, purple traps have been set up state wide to trap and track the insects, including in Voyageurs National Park.
He said he doubted the St. Paul confirmation would be the end of the borer situation in Minnesota.
“Never have the states been able to contain [the borers],” he said. “While we’d like to think that we found all of the infested trees, it’s unlikely.”
He agreed that because of the large ash population, there is incentive to keep the emerald ash borer out of northern Minnesota.
All agencies agree that following the law of not transporting firewood from outside 100 miles of its native area would help slow the borer’s progress.
Emerald ash borer was first discovered in the United States in Michigan in 2002. It is a native of Asia and likely came over to the United States in the 1990s. Additionally, it has been found in Wisconsin, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
Ash trees are popular in this area for heating and firewood. They are also used in landscape and found naturally in the forests.
“Be aware that the bugs are moving in — not moving firewood is the biggest thing,” Snyder said.
If infestation by the emerald ash borer is suspected, contact the local Department of Natural Resources or the Minnesota Department of Agriculture to have the tree inspected. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s “Arrest the Pest” Hotline is 1-888-545-6684.
The DNR list of approved firewood vendors, along with updated firewood restrictions, can be found on their Web site at www.dnr.state.mn.us/.
