Duluth Officials Ask for Residents’ Help in Stopping Emerald Ash Borer

Green Ribbons on Ash Trees Are Part of the City's Educational Campaign

DULUTH, Minn. – Emerald Ash Borer was first discovered in Duluth on Park Point in 2015 and has since been found elsewhere in the city. Duluth officials have a plan to stop the infestation from spreading, and are asking for residents’ help in implementing it.

The City of Duluth is launching an educational campaign to teach residents about Emerald Ash Borer and how they can help protect trees in their neighborhood.

Green ribbons are now attached to the trunks of many of Duluth’s approximately 2,400 ash trees. The ribbons direct residents to a webpage where they can learn more about the city’s Emerald Ash Borer management plan.

“These ribbons around the tree do not mean that these trees are slated for removal, they just provide a visual resource to show just how many ash trees are around town,” says Erik Birkeland, Property and Facilities Manager for the City of Duluth.

The city is asking that residents take a proactive approach by removing or treating their healthy ash trees with pesticides, and by learning the warning signs of an Emerald Ash Borer Infestation.

“One of the early signs that we’re going to be asking homeowners to look for in their tree is woodpecker activity, because they can smell and hear the larva chewing the foam layer under the bark and that’s usually the first indication that there’s something wrong,” says Judy Gibbs, Duluth’s Trees, Trails, and Bikeways Coordinator.

City officials will treat many of the ash trees larger than twelve inches in diameter on public boulevards, but some of the smaller trees will be removed starting this fall. According to the city, all removed trees will be replanted.

A public meeting about Duluth’s Emerald Ash Borer plan will be held Thursday, July 20th at Hartley Nature Center.