High Costs Related to Ash Borer Fight

An emerald ash borer outbreak in Illinois is forcing local officials to dip into their budgets to remove and replace infected trees.

In addition to being destructive to trees, emerald ash borers are proving to be devastating to municipal budgets. Gurnee, Ill. may have to spend up to $1.5 million over 10 years to fight these pests that invade and kills ash trees.

Forester Jake Balmes recently told Gurnee trustees and Mayor Kristina Kovarik the village has at least 3,347 public parkway ash trees and thousands more on private property. Balmes said the emerald ash borer was confirmed in Gurnee in early January. He said a plan for removal and replacement program is necessary because too many dead ash trees would pose a safety risk.

''Without action, we can assure every ash tree standing in our community is dead,'' Balmes said.

Illinois Department of Agriculture officials have determined the destructive metallic green beetle is in several Lake County communities. Experts say tree removal is the only known method that works to get rid of the emerald ash borer.

Millions of trees have been killed by the beetle in the Midwest. It can be present for three or four years before it is noticed. Balmes said cost considerations played into his recommendation to pursue an ash tree removal program over 10 years for an estimated $1.5 million instead of a more-aggressive five years. Another species of tree would be planted to replace the removed ash trees.

''We'll take a beating no matter which action we take,'' Balmes said. ''There's no way around that.''

Gurnee has set aside $100,000 in the 2011-12 budget to fight the beetle in the public parkways. As in other towns, private property owners in Gurnee will be responsible for costs to remove infested trees. Village officials in Northfield, Ill., located about 30 minutes south of Gurnee, expect to remove and replace 60 infested ash trees this year.

Over the spring, summer and fall of 2010, village foresters saw an increase in Emerald Ash Borer locations from 4 to 40. Since the ash borer was first identified in 2009, Northfield has identified 421 ash trees on public parkways alone.

Northfield's policy is to remove, rather than treat, infected trees, ''because the process is costly and must be repeated for the life of the tree,'' according to Village President Fred Gougler. The village budget includes $70,000 to remove and replace infested ash trees - $14,000 of which is from a Metropolitan Mayors Caucus grant.

''Over the next year, 60 publicly situated ash trees will be removed due to EAB infestation,'' Gougler said. ''These trees will be replaced with native trees such as hackberry, oak, elm and ginkgo trees.''