Charlottetown on the lookout for emerald ash borer

The City of Charlottetown has launched a program to protect its hundreds of ash trees from the emerald ash borer.

The emerald ash borer, an invasive beetle native to Asia, has killed tens of millions of ash trees in North America. It typically kills 99 per cent of trees once it moves into an area.

Charlottetown's street tree inventory includes more than 300 ash trees.

The beetle recently moved into the Maritimes, with insects spotted in Edmundston, N.B.

Charlottetown has partnered with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to install traps in six locations throughout the city to monitor for the insect. The traps, which do not contain any pesticides, are suspended high in the ash tree canopy.

Residents are being asked not to disturb the traps.

Burn it where you buy it

The beetle has not yet been found on P.E.I. The city calls the monitoring program the first line of defence against its impending arrival.

The city is also reminding people not to movefirewood, especially among provinces.

The emerald ash borer will not fly far on its own, so transportation by firewood is a prime method for it to move from one area to another.

The city saidfirewood should be burned as close as possible to the location where it was cut.

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