April 23, 2019 | Burlington, VT --The week of May 18-25 has been designated as National Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week, a nationwide effort to raise public awareness of an invasive forest pest that has destroyed millions of acres of ash forests in the U.S.
University of Vermont (UVM) Extension, in collaboration with the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, encourages Vermonters to get involved by planning a community activity, organizing a neighborhood ash tree tagging event or posting on social media or Front Porch Forum during the month of May.
An online Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week Toolkit (http://go.uvm.edu/eab-toolkit) has been created to help inspire action and ideas. It contains videos, posters, sample social media posts and other tools; teacher resources; and information on the emerald ash borer, ash tree identification and how to plan a community presentation or conduct a neighborhood tree tagging event.
During National Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week many community libraries will post informational posters on how to identify ash trees and detect and report findings of trees suspected to be infested with the emerald ash borer. This invasive wood-boring Asian beetle, first found in northern Orange County in 2018, has now been confirmed in four Vermont counties.
Young Writers Project (www.youngwritersproject.org) will announce the winners of an emerald ash borer writing challenge co-sponsored with the Vermont Urban and Community Forestry Program. The three winners will be invited to read their winning poem or prose at the annual Vermont Arbor Day Conference, May 2, at the Vermont College of Fine Arts in Montpelier.
In addition, a number of events are scheduled throughout May. For details and to learn about other planned activities, visit https://vtinvasives.org/news-events/events. Events include:
May 10: Emerald Ash Borer in Vermont, Bennington College, Bennington, 5-6 p.m.
May 18: Forest Pest First Detector training, Grand Isle Firehouse, Grand Isle, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Free but please register at http://go.uvm.edu/detector-training.
May 21: Focus on Vermont's Forests: The Emerald Ash Borer, Pavilion Building Auditorium, Montpelier, 12-1 p.m.
May 23: Ferrisburgh Conservation Commission Emerald Ash Borer talk, Town Hall, Ferrisburgh, 7-9 p.m.
May 30: Vermont Land Trust Emerald Ash Borer in the Islands field workshop, Grand Isle, 5-8 p.m. Free; limited space so registration is required at www.vlt.org/event/eab-islands.
For questions, or if planning an event or other activity, please contact Ginger Nickerson, UVM Extension forest pest educator, at ginger.nickerson@uvm.edu.