Emerald Ash Borer: Update & Grasshopper Park

Example of EAB damage: the tree shows illness
at the 'crown' first, leaving the tree looking
healthy to passers-by on the ground level. (image source)

The Emerald Ash Borer continues to eat its way through our city, and Alta Vista ward is definitely one of the worst hit. Ottawa’s Forestry department has been studying the Ward 18 area, and many of our streets are lined with well over 50% ash trees. It’s the sad reality of the situation that we will indeed be losing many trees in our neighbourhood. There is an injection that is being used on a trial basis, but it is still in the testing phase, and it can be expensive. Unfortunately, the only other solution is removal and disposal of the infected trees, in an attempt to slow the beetle’s spread.

Grasshopper Park, here in Alta Vista ward, is one of the badly hit areas. Tree removal continued right through the winter months, and many residents were upset by this activity. We’ve asked David Barkley, Manager of Forestry Services of the City of Ottawa, to share some of his knowledge with us.

“We had to remove many trees [in Grasshopper Park] this winter, as they had the potential to fall and cause damage if they came down on their own,” explained Barkley, “This is a liability that the City has to manage.”

How is the decision made about what trees need to come down and which can stay up? “The Forestry Staff continue to work closely with a number of specialists, both internal and external. We are working on management strategies for these sites; we know that all strategies will have affects on residents, animals, other plants, and even water quality. To keep everyone aware and to seek public comment, the City’s Emerald Ash Borer Strategy is a public document and has been brought to Committee for public comment several times.”

“We’re very conscientious of the timing of removals,” shares Barkley. “We take into consideration the birthing season and feeding, and the winter nesting season. We review these factors around each tree; we take into account which nests are active versus inactive storage caches.” In the end, of course, the risk management assessment must be taken very seriously: leaving a dead or hazardous tree could pose a threat to people and wildlife alike. The Emerald Ash Borer is infamous for its insidious practice of eating the trees from the inside-out, leaving a normal-looking—but brittle and dangerous—tree standing where a healthy tree once was.

What’s the next step? Barkley explains that first, they plan to complete the public Open House meetings (the final one is on April 23^rd, from 4-8pm at the Jim Durrell Centre, in Ellwood Hall), then seeking further consultation once they’ve completed the drafts of various woodlot management scenarios.

Councillor Hume has met with Barkley and has reviewed the area studies. The entire Hume Team strives to keep well-informed and educated on the matter of the EAB. Councillor Hume and Forestry continue to meet and discuss ways to reduce the negative impact of the EAB containment tactics in Ward 18, and together they continue to explore the most effective treatment, removal, and interplanting strategies.

For further questions, we recommend you attend the EAB info session on April 23rd; you can also call 3-1-1, check out Ottawa.ca, or stay tuned to the Hume Blog.