• Font Size    

Today's Most Popular Video

Deputy Attacked, Other Inmates Intervene
E-mail

Close Window E-mail This Page

Ash Borer Concerns Heightened Up North

Required fields are marked with an asterisk(*)

The information you provide will be used only to send the requested e-mail and will not be used to send any other e-mail communications. Read more in our Privacy Policy

Send E-mail

   Print     Share +   
Jun 20, 2009 12:24 pm US/Central

Ash Borer Concerns Heightened Up North

INTERNATIONAL FALLS, Minn. (AP) ― A biologist for Voyageurs National Park says the discovery of the emerald ash borer in St. Paul is a cause for concern in northern Minnesota.

Biologist John Snyder is urging the public to take greater precautions to avoid inadvertantly bringing the ash borer up north. Snyder says travelers should use the Department of Natural Resources' approved list of local firewood vendors, to avoid contaminating the forest.

The DNR says Koochiching County has 124 million ash trees in forest land. There are some 934 million ash trees in forests statewide.

Snyder says that because so few tree species can thrive in a black ash swamp, the area may have trouble recuperating from a decline in ash. Losing the ash trees could affect other plant and animal species as well.

-------

Chemically treating ash trees is not practical on a large scale, so property owners should also consider removing infected trees. This treatment currently costs from $250 to $350, every two to three years.

(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.