Emerald ash borer found in Green Bay

GREEN BAY - The emerald ash borer, an invasive species of insect that kills ash trees, has been found in Green Bay.

Officials with the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection said an adult beetle was discovered Thursday stuck to a survey trap in an ash tree on public land next to the Fox River, about a mile south of the bay.

"Part of the state's initial response will be working together with local officials and experts to determine the extent of the infestation and to develop a response to this infestation," DATCP emerald ash borer program manager Jennifer Statz said in a news release. "This won't be a quick process given the sizeable ash population in the area."

Federal regulators are now considering a quarantine of Brown County and possibly other areas of Northeast Wisconsin. Materials to be quarantined would include ash nursery stock, ash timber, tree trimmings and all hardwood firewood. State officials have already been asking people not to move firewood.

The emerald ash borer was discovered near Detroit in 2002, likely arriving in North America accidentally transported in wooden shipping crates from China. The insect has been blamed for destroying millions of trees. It has been found in 11 other states and in two Canadian provinces, Ontario and Quebec.

It's the beetle's larva that actually kills the host ash tree by tunneling through the soft wood that supplies the tree with food and water, officials said. Large, healthy trees can succumb to emerald ash borer usually within three to five years, but the signs of an infestation in a tree can be very subtle at first, and it's usually too late to save the tree once its determined that the insect is the cause of the problem.

Anyone concerned about the health of their ash trees should consult with professionals. There are a variety of treatments available for homeowners, though none are guaranteed to prevent or reverse an infestation.