Pantagraph.com Weather forecast, local radar and more
NewsTuesday, September 2, 2008 3:05 PM CDT
Comments Comments (6) | E-mail this page E-mail this page | Print this page Print this page | Enlarge type Enlarge type | Reduce type Reduce type | Search archives Search archives | RSS RSS feeds | Add to My Yahoo! Add to My Yahoo!
40 ash trees in Chenoa park likely will fall victim to ash borer
By M.K. Guetersloh
mkguetersloh@pantagraph.com
Advertisement

CHENOA -- The older, mature trees that provide shade for the city of Chenoa’s park soon could be gone. The park, just under the city’s water tower on the north side of the town, has 40 ash trees, all of which likely will fall victim to the emerald ash borer.

Chenoa Mayor Walt Hetman said the city’s main park is about three blocks in size and may have a handful of trees that are not ash.

“It didn’t make my day, that’s for sure,” Hetman said of the news that the emerald ash borer is active in the area.

The Illinois Department of Agriculture found the insect in southwest Bloomington earlier this summer. Since then, state officials determined the borer has been in McLean County — specifically Chenoa — for several years.

The larvae of the beetles feed on the inner bark of ash trees, ultimately strangling the trees.

Bloomington officials announced earlier this week the ash borer infestation will cost the city $2 million to $3 million. That’s the cost of removing and replanting 3,400 ash trees, about 20 percent of the city’s trees.

Area communities will see a mix of results in local landscapes and city budgets from the ash borer.

Eureka City Administrator Anne Sandvik said that city has found less than a dozen ash trees among the trees in its parks and along the streets.

She said she expects the ash borer to have little effect on the tree population there.

However Chenoa, a town of about 1,800 on the Livingston-McLean county line, has more than 200 ash trees that likely will have to come down.

Hetman estimated the city is looking at costs starting at $250,000. With an annual general fund budget of about $1.2 million, that will put an unexpected strain on the city’s resources.

“Some of the smaller trees we might be able to save, but I don’t know how we are going to pay for any of it,” Hetman said.

Although there is no way to eradicate the pests right now, there are some treatments that may help the ash trees fend them off.

The city of Pontiac is spending about $5,000 this year to treat about 250 of its ash trees. Pontiac Street Superintendent Chris Brock said that because they are doing the treatments themselves, it saves on costs.

Next year they will spend about $6,500, he added.

Brock estimated there are 600 to 650 ash trees in Pontiac. Because of the bug’s appearance in Chenoa — about 10 miles south of Pontiac — he said it is only a matter of time before it is found there.

“It’s pretty grim if you stop and look at it,” Brock said. “So we are trying our best to save some of these trees.”

How much it will cost Pontiac to take down the remaining 400 or so trees that city staff cannot save has not been determined, Brock said.

“We are just like everyone else trying to get the most for our dollar,” Brock said. “Fortunately we do our own tree work so that will save us some money.”

Take a look
Emerald ash borer adult. (David Cappaert, Michigan State University)
Video
Most commented stories
Browse online archives
Recent issues:
Reader comments on this story - 6 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

royalty wrote on Sep 3, 2008 3:00 PM:

" Chenoa is paying $5000 to treat 250 trees. Or $20 a tree.

Bloomington will pay $3,000,000 to cut down and remove 3,400 trees. Or almost $900 a tree.

Chenoa will have trees. Bloomington will not.

Why is Bloomington in such a hurry to pay 45 times as much to kill the trees, when they can easily protect them from emerald ash borer with a single annual application of an insecticide, made to the soil at the base of the tree?

It takes about five minutes to treat a tree with the insecticide. It will take a day to cut it down, chip it up, and have it carted away.

Somebody in Bloomington hasn't thought this one through. If I were a citizen in Bloomington, I'd be asking my civic leaders some tough questions.

In the meantime, homeowners should head to the local garden center, buy a bottle of Bayer Advanced's Tree and Shrub, and treat their ash trees. For $20 per 10" diameter tree. And five minutes of their time. "

In the Know wrote on Sep 2, 2008 2:35 PM:

" Double check student, these guys can fly 50 miles a day that's why they gone from MI, MN, to Ill in last 5 years or less. They came from the NY area on shipping pallets, and been "flying" thru the trees since then. The burning or double chipping kill the larva, not the bug...unlike the elm trees, these trees can be treated and "cured" if you will. "

student9G wrote on Sep 2, 2008 7:58 AM:

" To DaveII:
The trees are chipped and burned because that kills the Ash Borer. Although it does add carbon dioxide to the environment, it also solves the problem of "what to do with the bugs." The trees need to be removed because they can spread this organism. These insects can't fly very far, and they stop at an ash tree, reproduce, then the offspring fly on to the next tree.
I would not be suprised if this ends up like Dutch Elm Disease and causes the Ash to go extinct in this country. "

In the Know wrote on Sep 2, 2008 7:48 AM:

" Not to sure where you numbers come from, NSP...but, the workers are paid the same if they're cutting grass, setting up tables, changing the oil in the trucks or treating/ trimming the trees. The epqt. cost is a one time cost, and there are already people who have a "license" to use pesticides on the city payroll. It would be 200 a tree, for LARGE tree or 400 to cut it down, with the fuel cost plus DOUBLE chipping, or burn-off. The numbers show to cut down ALL of the trees in Pontiac would cost 300,000 or more..... "

Not so Political wrote on Sep 1, 2008 3:29 PM:

" You add the cost of the products the training and the pay of the employees and this is going to cost more than any 20 dollars per tree. and do not for get the cost of getting applicators licences for the employees. also the bigger the tree the more it is going to cost to treat the tree. 20 dollars for a 4 inch tree maybe but a couple hundred if the tree is 24 inches in dia. "

DaveII wrote on Sep 1, 2008 1:28 PM:

" Why the rush to destroy these trees? From earlier media reports those cut down are chipped and burned.....where are the environmental alarmists complaining about the carbon footprint?

And, where are the successful treatments? Or status of development?

If my ash trees are to come down tax $$ will be needed 'cause I don't have money for that expense. "
Add your own comments

Please read the rules before posting comments.

You must be logged in to leave comments.
If you don't have a member ID, please register.

*Member ID:
*Password:
Remember login?
(requires cookies)
  Forgot Your Password?
 
Lee Enterprises Customer Service | 301 W. Washington St., PO Box 2907, Bloomington, IL 61701-2907 | Ph. 309-829-9000 | 800-747-7323
Copyright © 2008, Pantagraph Publishing Co. and Lee Enterprises. All rights reserved. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy