None Forests Press Releases Search All Press Releases Erica Rychwalski Phone: (703) 841-4837 E-mail: erychwalski@tnc.org

Maryland at Risk for Losing Millions of Trees and Dollars

State Faces Economic and Ecological Threats from Invasive Insect

Arlington, VA? January 16, 2007 ? The Maryland Departments of Agriculture and Natural Resources will continue to cut down ash trees in parks and forests this week in Prince George?s County as a strategy to stop an outbreak of the invasive emerald ash borer. Unless sufficient funding is provided to manage this destructive insect, the state faces the loss of millions of trees and dollars.

The Nature Conservancy recommends that the U.S. Department of Agriculture make $3.7 million in Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) emergency funds available to aid the efforts.

?While the work of the Maryland Department of Agriculture, and the federal Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is extremely commendable, they simply do not have the resources to eradicate this outbreak,? said Frank Lowenstein, Director of Forest Health Programs at The Nature Conservancy. ?The CCC funds would provide the needed resources to protect the rest of Maryland and many adjacent states against further economic and ecological losses.?

Economic and Environmental Impacts
According to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources there are approximately six million ash trees in Baltimore and surrounding counties and losses could exceed $227 million in the Baltimore area alone if the emerald ash borer becomes established. In Maryland, ash species are extremely important in wetlands and streamside habitats, which are being reforested to protect the water quality of the Chesapeake Bay.

The continued spread of the emerald ash borer, and other invasive introduced forest pests and pathogens, poses a serious threat to the ecological and economic values of the nation?s forest resources. Failure to stop the spread of the emerald ash borer will likely result in the elimination of the 16 species of ash now found in North America. Ash trees provide shelter for deer, moose, beaver, rabbits and porcupines and a food source of seeds for ducks, song and game birds, small mammals and insects.

The loss of ash species may also cause more than $85 billion in economic damage. Up to 114 million board feet of ash timber worth $25 billion, is grown currently in the eastern United States. This pest threatens to kill up to 90 million trees along streets and in yards, parks and forests, valued at approximately $60 billion. The nursery industry produces an estimated 2 million ash trees a year, worth up to $140 million.

Eradicating the Emerald Ash Borer
With the appropriate funding and preventative measures, however, the emerald ash borer can be managed and contained. The development of more effective trapping and detection strategies, exploration of control measures and public education programs will all contribute the eradication of the emerald ash borer.

?The Nature Conservancy looks forward to working with the Administration to utilize all possible approaches to increase investments in the nation-wide emerald ash borer program,? said Lowenstein. ?Funding for this and other plant pest and pathogen eradication programs needs to be dramatically increased if we are to protect our nation?s forest resources.?

Combating Invasive Species
With more than two decades experience in invasive species management, the Conservancy is tackling the challenge through science leadership, effective land and water management, and encouraging better business practices and stronger public policies, which will prevent new invasions and stem the spread of established invaders.

Learn more about the Conservancy?s work to prevent and control the spread of invasive species around the world.

The Nature Conservancy is the leading conservation organization working to protect the most ecologically important lands and waters around the world for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.