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It was revealed by New York state officials the pest emerald ash borer was found in two more NY counties. The emerald ash borer was found in the traps deployed by the Department of Environmental Conservation in the southeast of Broome County, in Binghamton and also in Westchester County, in the small city of Peekskill.
The current state and federal emerald ash borer quarantine stopped just outside the city of Peekskill, but now that the emerald ash borer was found in Peekskill, the quarantine area just widened. The entire quarantine encompasses all or just some parts of 42 counties through western and central New York, including Putnam (north of New York) and Orange.
Officials are saying that the infested areas are still localized and quite small, but that there is a chance for the beetle to reach other areas of New York.
The state of New York currently has more than 900 million ash trees (which make up for 9% of all the trees in the state), which are all at risk for becoming infected if the emerald ash borer finds its way to them.
DEC Commissioner, Joe Martens, revealed in a statement:
DEC deployed the trap that detected the EAB beetle as part of DEC’s continuing Slow Ash Mortality (SLAM) strategy, to slow the spread of EAB within the state and mitigate its economic and environmental impacts.
The emerald ash borer was found for the first time in 2009, in Randolph, Cattaraugus County, New York. Since that year, the state has set up traps to detect the bug and it has been found in a total of 24 counties in the state of New York.
Emerald ash borers kill ash trees by depositing their larvae into its trunk. The larvae then feeds and digs galleries which stop the tree from getting the nutrients it needs to survive from the ground.
If you own a forest, then you can have your property checked by contacting the local DEC Forestry Office in your area. Follow this link for more information about how to contact the Lands and Forest Offices: http://www.dec.ny.gov/about/27790.html
