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Home > Pest Survey & Management > Pest Information > ALB > ALB Updates > Eradication Funding 2010

 

USDA Announces Additional Funding to Eradicate Asian Longhorned Beetle in Massachusetts

 

WASHINGTON, Jan. 11, 2010 -- Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the availability of $41.5 million in emergency funding to prevent the spread of the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) in Massachusetts.

"The USDA, along with our key partners in Massachusetts, has worked hard to contain and the Asian longhorned beetle, an invasive pest that has the potential to devastate our forests and backyard trees," Vilsack said. "These additional funds will allow for a more aggressive approach to ensure ALB does not spread to other areas in New England."

The emergency funding will be used in Massachusetts to increase tree surveys in order to determine the extent of the infestation, expand the use of treatments to reduce the beetle population and ensure the timely removal of infested trees.

"I have been to Massachusetts, seen the impact of ALB on communities and spoken to lawmakers and residents directly affected because I wanted to hear the concerns of many partners working with us in this effort," Vilsack added. "With this funding, USDA reinforces our shared goal of stopping this destructive pest and protecting valued resources."

The insect, which attacks healthy hardwood trees, was discovered in Worcester, Mass., in August 2008. Currently, a 74-square mile area regulated to control the ALB includes all of the city of Worcester and the town of West Boylston, as well as portions of the towns of Boylston, Holden and Shrewsbury. To date, USDA and its partners have removed 25,575 trees in an effort to stop the ALB infestation in Massachusetts.

The ALB eradication program is a cooperative effort among various federal, state and local agencies. USDA and its partners use an integrated pest eradication strategy that includes quarantines to stop the movement of regulated material, visual inspections around confirmed sites to determine the scope of infestations, removal of infested and high-risk exposed trees and treatment of host trees.

ALB was first discovered in Brooklyn, New York, in 1996. The insect is about 1 to 1.5 inches long, has a shiny jet black body with distinctive white spots and long antennae (often twice the length of the bodies) that are banded in black and white. ALB larvae bore into healthy hardwood trees and feed on living tree tissue and heartwood. The larval tunneling disrupts the nutrients that flow from root to branch and back again, eventually killing the tree. Throughout the summer, adult beetles emerge from exit holes and briefly feed on the leaves and small twigs of host trees. USDA and its partners are currently eradicating ALB infestations in Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. USDA declared eradication of two ALB infestations in Chicago, Ill., and Hudson County N.J., in 2008.

For information about the beetle and program activities, please contact the Massachusetts ALB program at 1-866-702-9938. Log on to www.aphis.usda.gov or http://massnrc.org/pests/alb , or visit www.beetlebusters.info for more information about ALB, including pictures and where to report a suspected beetle.

 

Contact:

Rhonda Santos (508) 799-8330
Suzanne Bond (301) 734-5175