Worcester Tornado Damage Spreads Risk of Beetle Infestation
Wednesday, September 03, 2014
City Officials are requiring all residents to use ALB-certified contractors when dealing with tree removals as one way to help curb concerns about the beetle’s spread.
“There are always concerns about the spread of the beetle when there is some form of weather damage to trees,” said Randy Cadet, Acting State Plant Health Director for the USDA in Massachusetts. “There is always a concern that debris from branches will brake off and spread. There is also a concern that wood from host trees could be moved to other areas.”
Cadet says that anytime a severe weather pattern occurs in the area where multiple trees are damaged, similar concerns will rise. The priority for cities in the regulated Asian Longhorned Beetle zone then becomes to inform the public and ensure that potentially infected trees are not leaving the area. The Worcester County area has already lost over 34,000 trees to Asian Longhorned Beetles after five years of eradication efforts.
Maintaining the Regulated Zone
One of the top priorities for the city of Worcester and the Department of Public Works was to make sure that the damaged trees were not only removed from streets and pathways, but to inform and educate citizens about the precautions that need to be taken to prevent the spread of the ALB.
In addition to requiring all residents to use ALB-certified contractors to remove wood from their property, the city opened their yard waste drop-off site at Millbury Street on Tuesday – a day that the site is typically closed – in order to give people a place to drop off storm debris. Residents are also strongly urged to not transport the wood out of the regulated area, to better prevent the spread of the Asian Longhorned Beetle.
Concerned, but Lucky
While the tornado caused damage in the area that it touched down, many throughout the city are thankful that the damage was contained to a single area and not more widespread like the tornado of 1953 or the ice storm of 2008, a statement that is echoed by Trisha Sharp, ALB Project Manager in Massachusetts.
While the concern is very much alive that this wood could be spread and lead to the beetle spreading throughout the city or beyond, Sharp says that the combination of the area where the tornado hit not having a large problem with the beetles in the past and the city prioritizing the issue are reasons why she is confident that the beetle will not spread as a result of this tornado.
“We are very fortunate that this was not a widespread issue and much more of a localized occurrence,” said Sharp. “We have sent out several teams to go through the regulated area to see if the tornado had any effects. Moving wood out around or out of the regulated area is still a huge concern, especially because we are entering a time period where people are looking for firewood, but we think that the quick action of those involved to inform citizens is doing a great job to prevent this spread.”
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