MANHATTAN, Kan. – The Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA) along with the U.S. Department of Agriculture has confirmed the presence of emerald ash borer in Douglas County, Kansas.
On Sept. 30, 2015, an EAB larva was removed from a girdled tree trap in Eudora by KDA in cooperation with the City of Eudora, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Plant Protection and Quarantine (USDA-APHIS-PPQ), and the Kansas Forest Service.
Regulatory officials with USDA-APHIS-PPQ confirmed the presence of EAB.
The trapping effort is a part of a local plan to establish seven girdled trap trees around the Kansas City Metro area to enhance the early detection network created by the national EAB survey conducted by KDA and USDA-APHIS-PPQ.
“In Kansas, we have worked for years on emerald ash borer prevention and surveillance efforts,” said Jeff Vogel, KDA Plant Protection and Weed Control program manager. “These vigilant surveillance efforts allowed us to catch the pest early, which allows communities to prepare for the eventual impact of the emerald ash borer.”
Emerald ash borer, a pest of ash trees native to Asia, was first discovered in North America near Detroit, Michigan, in summer 2002. Since that time, the pest has killed millions of ash trees in Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Immediately after confirmation by KDA and USDA-APHIS-PPQ, Kansas expanded an emergency intrastate quarantine, currently in place in Johnson, Leavenworth and Wyandotte counties, to include Douglas County to help prevent further spread of EAB in Kansas. Vogel said if Kansans outside of the quarantined areas think any of their trees may have the pest, they should notify KDA immediately at (785) 564-4468 or ppwc@kda.ks.gov.
KDA is committed to serving Kansas farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses, and to protecting the state’s natural resources. Vogel said all Kansans will play an important role in monitoring for EAB. In cooperation with USDA-APHIS-PPQ, the Kansas Forest Service and K-State Research and Extension, KDA plans to host educational meetings in Douglas County to provide information about EAB and to ensure that all necessary facilities and individuals are equipped to treat and dispose of EAB infested material properly to prevent further spread of the pest.
To learn the most current information on the quarantine, visit http://agriculture.ks.gov/divisions-programs/plant-protect-weed-control/emerald-ash-borer. To learn more about the EAB, visit www.emeraldashborer.info.