OHIO DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 2, 2003
Media Contact: Melanie Wilt, ODA Communications, 614-752-9817 

State Takes Action to Eradicate Emerald Ash Borer;
Homeowners in Lucas County Cooperate in Eradication Efforts 

REYNOLDSBURG – The Ohio Department of Agriculture sent letters this week to property owners near five quarantined properties on the 5100 block of Berkey-Southern Road, near Whitehouse in Lucas County, notifying them that it will remove ash trees from their properties and dispose of them in order to eradicate the destructive Emerald Ash Borer from Ohio. Other property owners farther from the infestation were notified that their trees will be treated with an insecticide that is effective only in preventing new infestations of the Emerald Ash Borer.  

The action was taken under the department’s authority in Ohio Revised Code Section 927.70 to control, eradicate, and prevent the spread of the invasive ash tree pest that was confirmed on these Swanton Township properties last month.  

“An infestation within a quarter mile of an otherwise healthy ash tree is a virtual death sentence for that tree. That’s how destructive this pest is,” Ohio Agriculture Director Fred L. Dailey said. “We are obliged to pay the cost of cutting these trees to eliminate Emerald Ash Borer from Ohio so these homeowners do not have to go to that expense when the trees inevitably die.” 

Since March 13, five properties on Berkey-Southern Road near Whitehouse in Swanton Township have been quarantined by ODA, which means owners are restricted from moving any trees, branches, firewood, or wood chips. In addition, 21 properties on Berkey-Southern Rd., Reed Rd., and Oak River Rd. will have ash trees removed. About half of the properties in the near vicinity have no ash trees. In all, about 3,000 ash trees, most of which are saplings, have been targeted for removal.  

Other properties farther from the infestation will be treated at the state’s expense with imidacloprid, an insecticide that is injected into the ground and has been effective in experiments in preventing new infestations. The treatment will be used to protect about 200 trees. There is no practical insecticide treatment for trees already infested or trees a short distance from the infestation, which may be infested but not yet show signs of damage. 

State regulations are in place to control and prevent the spread of a number of invasive species and plant diseases to protect the health of Ohio’s plants and prevent massive economic losses to the nursery, timber, and tourism industries and the communities they serve. The state is authorized by Ohio Revised Code Section 927.70 to remove all trees and timber in a given area for those purposes.  

Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis) is an invasive species from Asia that belongs to a group of insects known as metallic wood-boring beetles. Adults are dark metallic green in color, ½ inch in length and 1/16 inch wide, and are present from mid May until late July. Larvae are creamy white in color and invade and damage the tree the rest of the year. It will typically kill an ash tree within three years.

Trees on all of the Lucas County properties showed symptoms of infestation by this pest – die-back on the upper third of the tree, D-shaped exit holes in the bark where adults emerge, vertical splits in the bark, and distinct serpentine-shaped tunnels beneath the bark in the cambium, where larvae effectively cut off food and water to the tree, starving it to death. The borer is known to affect white, black, and green ash trees and all varieties of horticultural ash. 

The Emerald Ash Borer is thought to have existed in North America for about the last five years. Its first confirmation came last summer in Michigan, where it is estimated to have destroyed over a million ash trees to date. Billions of ash trees are at risk in Ohio and the rest of the United States. 

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Note to Editor: More information on the Emerald Ash Borer and pictures of the pest and its destruction are available at the Ohio Department of Agriculture web site, www.state.oh.us/agr.