CorrugatedPallets.com | Toronto responds to Asian Longhorned Beetle’s attack on urban forest

Toronto responds to Asian Longhorned Beetle’s attack on urban forest

This document originally appeared at: http://wx.toronto.ca/inter/it/newsrel.nsf/7017df2f20edbe2885256619004e428e/7456d0318714c4ee85256da2004a8c88?OpenDocument
Date Modified: 2003-09-15

The Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALHB) which has devastated the tree canopies in parts of New York and Chicago since the late 1990s has now been discovered in parts of the City of Vaughan and the City of Toronto.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is implementing an aggressive campaign to control and eradicate the Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALHB) following confirmation of its infestation on September 11. This is the first confirmed infestation of Asian Longhorned Beetle attacking trees in Canada.

This beetle is an invasive quarantine insect, native to Asia and is known to kill healthy trees. ALHB can attack the majority of Canadian broadleaf trees, including species of maple, birch, poplars, willow and fruit trees.

The City of Toronto has been vigilant in its surveillance of the urban forest for signs of this pest following its initial detection in the United States in the late 1990s. In 2000, Toronto City Council approved an emergency response plan in the event that the pest is discovered in Toronto. The City is now implementing this response plan.

As Toronto’s Tree Advocate, I am committed in my support of the CFIA’s and Toronto Urban Forestry’s plan to stop the advance of the Asian Longhorned Beetle and rebuild our forest by taking the following course of action:

Identify area of infestation and the eradication of this invasive pest within the affected area
Seek funding through the Government of Canada and the CFIA to cover the costs of eradicating the infestation and replanting trees in our city
Appeal to Toronto residents and businesses to support our extensive re-planting efforts
Continue our public education efforts to provide information about threats to Toronto’s urban forest
Encourage Toronto residents and businesses to work with the Toronto’s excellent Urban Forestry Unit to identify and report areas of infestation.

Toronto’s Tree Advocacy Planting Program (TAPP) has been successful in adding 200,000 trees to Toronto’s urban forest since its inception four years ago. The Asian Longhorned Beetle presents a serious setback to our efforts to continue to green our city — and I am appealing to all Torontonians to be vigilant and report signs of infestation to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency at 1-800-442-2342, or check http://www.inspection.gc.ca