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Home My WebLink AboutOPD-012-12 Clarington REPORT OPERATIONS DEPARTMENT Meeting: GENERAL PURPOSE AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE Date: November 26, 2012 Resolution#: " By-law#: Report#: OPD-012-12 File#: Subject: EMERALD ASH BORER RECOMMENDATIONS: It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee recommend to Council the following: 1. THAT Report OPD-012-12 be received; 2. THAT Council approve staff recommendations for dealing with infestations of Emerald Ash borer as part of our Emerald Ash Borer Management Plan; 3. THAT this report be forwarded to the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) to seek support for the Provincial and Federal funding to assist in managing the Emerald Ash Borer; and 4. THAT the Region of Durham be advised of Council's Decision. Submitted by: �- Reviewed by: Fir d' lorvath Franklin Wu, - irector f Operations Chief Administrative Officer BG/cv CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON 40 TEMPERANCE STREET, BOWMANVILLE, ONTARIO L1C 3A6 T 905-623-3379 REPORT NO.: OPD-012-12 PAGE 2 1. BACKGROUND This report outlines the challenge and provides recommendations for the management of Emerald Ash Borer for the Municipality. The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is a highly destructive beetle. It is a pest of Ash trees. It was confirmed by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) in the summer of 2002. It has killed a large number of Ash tree in North America and poses a major economic and environmental threat to urban and forested areas across Canada and the United States. The EAB does not pose a risk to Human health. The beetle is metallic green in colour and is 8.5 to 14 mm long and 3.1 to 3.4 mm wide, the back is iridescent green, and the underside is bright emerald green. The body is narrow and elongated, and the head is flat. As shown below: Little information was known about EAB in 2002. Arriving in North America through improperly treated wooden packaging material from Asia. Despite substantial research and control efforts the beetle has continued to spread to new areas, and because of confirmed infestations in Durham Region (Pickering, Whitby and Oshawa) it has become a threat to Clarington's Ash population. 2.0 The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is the Federal agency responsible for regulating introduced forestry or agricultural pests. Currently there are 22 regions in Ontario that are regulated under CFIA for EAB, including Durham Region. Federal measures prohibit the movement of any Ash tree materials and firewood of all species. Once EAB is detected, Municipalities must monitor and manage the pest with their own resources 3.0 COMMENTS Trees are living assets in the Community and provide many benefits that are often overlooked. Collectively trees make up the "Urban Forest" which has shown that it improves the quality of life as urbanization increases. However, in certain cases, urban trees can become problematic and costly to manage. If the REPORT NO.: OPD-012-12 PAGE 3 full benefits are to be fully realized, and the negatives (costs) are to be minimized, we must understand out tree resource. A tree inventory is the way to gather the required information to understand the benefits and costs of Clarington's trees. At the most basic level of an inventory, it includes information on the location of the trees, their health and structural condition, and current maintenance needs. The inventory would allow the identification of goals and objectives of maintenance programs, including managing a threat such as EAB. This proactive approach will allow the Municipality to effectively monitor and manage this pest. Although the Municipality does not have a comprehensive tree inventory at present, based on the number of homes and park lands in comparison with other municipalities, we estimate the Ash population on Clarington's boulevards and parks to be approximately 3,000 to 4,000 trees. Clarington staff has been proactively inspecting Ash trees that have shown some symptoms of decline for the presence of EAB for the past several years and have yet to confirm its presence in Clarington. On August 24th 2011 the City of Oshawa hosted a meeting with neighbouring Municipalities including Clarington to discuss EAB in an effort to develop a consistent strategy to deal with EAB. No Municipalities within Durham had an EAB management plan, but the recommended strategies are consistent with other EAB effected Municipalities. The strategy was to remove infested trees, inject pesticide treatments for high value trees, monitor and replant non ash species trees. A follow up meeting was held on September 27, 2012 to update on the current status of EAB in the region. The following is the update from each Municipality in attendance; Pickering: • EAB originally discovered in 2008 • Have since removed 200 infested trees • Spent approx. $50,000 to treat high value ash with Treeazin • Completed a street tree inventory for,one neighbourhood • Requested $300,000 in 2013 for the removal, treatment and replacement of ash trees Ajax: • EAB first sighted and confirmed in August 2012 • Have treated 115 trees since the discovery • Have a current GPS based inventory with approx. 4000 Ash trees • Council have approved the treatment strategy to treat 30% of Ash trees, removal of remaining REPORT NO.: OPD-012-12 PAGE 4 Whitby: • Have removed over 200 Infested Ash trees on boulevards • Treated only Ash trees in Parks • Currently working on a street tree inventory with an estimate of 8000 Ash trees, are planning to remove all Ash trees on boulevards • Have requested 2 more wood chippers in 2013 to assist with Ash removals Oshawa: • Installed 32 EAB traps throughout Oshawa to determine extent of infestation in 2012. 29 had positive results in every area across the City • Completed a tree inventory in 2012, but does not include open spaces • Have not removed any infested trees, but have treated 649 Ash trees with Treeazin • Planning to treat 3000 more Ash trees in 2013 4.0 CLARINGTON EMERALD ASH BORER MANAGEMENT PLAN The goal of the strategy to manage an EAB infestation is to preserve the Municipalities' tree canopy, slow the spread of EAB whenever possible, and allow for the preservation of high value trees to allow for other control measures to be introduced in the future. The proposed elements for a Clarington EAB management plan are: 1) Staff continue to proactively monitor known Ash areas for possible infestations and respond to residents' concerns of possible EAB infestations 2) Staff to include an increase of$10,000 in the 2013 budget to deal with Ash tree removals, replacements, and/or tree injections for preservation. 3) Staff, in conjunction with Purchasing, develop a list of tree companies with pricing for the treatment through pesticide injections to preserve high value public Ash trees and be available to residents for private Ash trees 4) Develop a public awareness and education strategy to communicate information about EAB and treatment options for residents with Ash trees on private property with an estimated cost of $5,000 for print, website and newspaper articles. 5) That the Region of Durham be requested to develop a proper waste disposal program for EAB infested material. 6) That Council approve a comprehensive inventory of Clarington's publicly owned Urban and Park trees in the 2013 Budget. REPORT NO.: OPD-012-12 PAGE 5 5.0 CONCURRENCE - Not applicable CONFORMITY WITH STRATEGIC PLAN — The recommendations contained in this report conform to the general intent of the following priorities of the Strategic Plan: (Place an "X" in the box for all that apply) Promoting economic development Maintaining financial stability Connecting Clarington Promoting green initiatives X Investing in infrastructure Showcasing our community Not in conformity with Strategic Plan Staff Contact: Bob Genosko, Operations Supervisor List of Interested Parties: None