October 9, 2002 - Plant health officials with the Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA) today provided an update regarding the Emerald Ash Borer – an exotic pest from Asia that affects ash trees and was first identified in five Southeast Michigan counties in July of this year.

Specifically, the Emerald Ash Borer has also been found in Monroe County, according to Ken Rauscher, director of MDA’s Pesticide and Plant Pest Management Division. Because of this discovery, the County has been added to the state’s quarantined area of Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne counties.

Under this quarantine, ash trees, branches, and firewood may not be moved outside these counties unless certified for movement by MDA. Similar restrictions apply to ash logs, ash lumber and ash wood chips larger than one inch in diameter. Ash wood chips less than one-inch in diameter are considered exempt from the quarantine requirements.

In addition, Rauscher issued an urgent reminder to travelers and hunters within the six-county quarantine to NOT transport ash firewood outside of this area as doing so could inadvertently spread the pest. This includes no hauling of ash firewood to cabins or other destinations in other regions of Michigan.

"With the strong cooperation and pooling of expertise between our federal, state, university and local partners, we are confident that Michigan is doing everything possible to control and prevent the spread of this new invasive species and minimize the impact on the state’s ash trees and nursery and landscape industries," Rauscher said. "A key part of this effort is also the cooperation of local county residents and nursery and landscape businesses. We look forward to their continued involvement and support."

The Emerald Ash Borer, a pest belonging to a group of insects known as metallic wood-boring beetles, is not native to Michigan or anywhere in the United States. Adults are dark metallic green in color, 1/2 inch in length and 1/16 inch wide. Larvae are creamy white in color and are found under the bark. Their appearance typically goes undetected until the trees show symptoms of being infested – usually the upper third of a tree will thin and then die back. This is usually followed by a large number of shoots or branches arising below the dead portions of the trunk.

The known host range of this borer is limited to species of ash trees. In Michigan, most ash are either white, black or green ash. Emerald Ash Borer does not attack mountain ash, which is not related to white, black or green ash trees, and is not regulated under the quarantine.

Very little information on the beetle is available from its native region, and limited control or management recommendations exist to date. To help develop long-term strategies for controlling and managing this new exotic pest and minimizing its damage, Michigan State University’s Project GREEEN (Generating Research and Extension to meet Environmental and Economic Needs) plant initiative and MDA have teamed up to develop and fund research, in partnership with federal and state agencies, aimed at addressing these issues.

In the interim, plant health officials recommend an integrated, comprehensive approach of proper sanitation, diversity in new plantings, practicing sound tree care techniques, and possibly using insecticide treatments. Contact your local MSU Extension office for further details and one-on-one technical assistance. MSU Plant Diagnostics Services, part of the University’s Center for Integrated Plant Systems, is also available to help in the timely and efficient identification, diagnosis and recommendations of pests like the Emerald Ash Borer. They can be contacted at 517/355-4536 or online at www.cips.msu.edu/diagnostics/.

Homeowners, landscapers, and arborists outside of Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, Washtenaw, and Wayne counties are encouraged to be on the lookout for this new exotic pest and report any signs or dying ash trees to the local MDA or MSU Extension office, or via the state’s toll-free Emerald Ash Borer Hotline at 866/325-0023. More information can be found online at www.michigan.gov/mda and using the key word "ash borer."