Communicating Regional Environmental Issues: Emerald Ash Borer In New York

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Jamie Bratt

Topic: Emerald Ash Borer in CNY


Many people may think back to their hometown and some of the major environmental issues they may have experienced first hand and therefore develop an attraction to solving the issue or communicating the effects. I personally feel this obligation to communicate and “spread the word” about some of the major environmental threats I have experience with. As someone who grew up in Central New York, the Emerald Ash Borer is a major threat to many of the tree species that makes up much of the vast green spaces and parks that cover New York. Due to the prominence of the effects of the Emerald Ash Borer, I think that it is an issue that people who haven't seen it may not understand the true impact and therefore it is important to inform others about the situation with the Emerald Ash Borer in New York.

The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is a species of wood boring jewel beetle that is invasive to New York and originated in Northeast Asia. It is thought that the Emerald Ash Borer was introduced to the United States in the early 2000’s, as the first sighting was in Michigan in 2002. From Michigan the EAB spread its impact throughout the northern United States, impacting a handful of states that ultimately includes New York, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and parts of New England. The EAB is a wood boring beetle species that lives, breeds, and lays eggs in trees while eating the trees wood and bark. Emerald Ash Borers, per their name, carry out their lives dominantly in Ash species of trees. The EAB has few natural predators so it is unlikely that the damage will cease naturally, in fact, it seems human intervention is required to solve such an ecological threat. 

In New York specifically, the EAB was devastating to the Ash tree population. In Central New York many of the forests and county parks are absent of Ash trees, especially the county owned Beaver Lake Nature Center, in which the vast majority of Ash trees are either dead or dying. The few Ash trees that you can find at Beaver Lake are planted and protected specifically by the county. Over the past decade, there have been a variety of methods that have been used to limit the EAB’s impact that ranges from banning lumber imports and implementing EAB traps for removal. Despite the efforts to limit the impacts of the EAB, they still exist but the rate of their destruction has been hindered by the county’s environmental programs. 

Today, the Emerald Ash Borer continues to wreak havoc on the forests of the Northeastern United States and it is imperative that this issue continues to be addressed as it poses a great threat to not only Ash trees but to the ecological system itself. Many of the areas affected by the EAB have implemented effective policies that limit the amount of damage but the counties and states can only do so much. The presence of the EAB is greatly influenced by people who travel for hiking or camping that may bring wood with them that contain the EAB beetle. This is difficult primarily because hiking and camping is one of the most commonly promoted activities in the state. So, a policy banning the importation of wood whether it be for building or a simple campfire may be difficult but would help limit the spread of the invasive EAB. Many campgrounds and parks will ask people on the way in if they brought any wood from outside the area, some people lie and bring their own, despite the risk, and others simply follow the rules. Those who bring their own wood from out of town effectively puts the entire forest in which they are traveling at risk. At the end of the day, when you have an issue in which proper and effective policy is in place the burden shifts to the public who is now responsible for following the rules. Regulations regarding firewood have become more and more strict as the years go by as, at least in Central New York, the goal is to completely eliminate the EAB as an environmental threat.

My environmental communication project is based around this idea of encouraging people to abide by new policy for the greater good of the public and the environment. This is based around my knowledge and experience living near and working within the Onondaga County park system. In my experience, as well as my colleagues at Beaver Lake, the measures taken by the county parks are proven to be effective but only if people comply with policy, which becomes the issue, failure of public compliance to general environmental regulation. The goal of this project is simple: communicate information to the public about the EAB’s impact on the biodiversity and health of native trees in New York, as well as other sections of the Northeastern United States. My initial plan for this project was to make a short environmental film based around imagery and interviews with workers at Beaver Lake, an affected area. However, my interview dates ultimately fell through and I was forced to take my images and my personal knowledge, as well as some other sources to compile a brief post in which I present a simple way to understand the issue and send an effective message. So, I attached my completed communication piece discussing the impacts of the Emerald Ash Borer and calling for compliance to environmental policy.




EAB Communication Piece:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1h22TNXT6EhCIhI8PwB1sgY7_nt0BL6wA_-ZhQUwvnLM/edit



Sources: 

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/planthealth/plant-pest-and-disease-programs/pests-and-diseases/emerald-ash-borer 


https://www.invasiveinsects.ca/eab/where_m.html 


http://www.thedenvertreeservices.com/emerald-ash-borer 


https://www.arborday.org/trees/treeGuide/TreeDetail.cfm?ItemID=1082 


https://news.psu.edu/story/586816/2019/09/07/research/ash-tree-species-likely-will-survive-emerald-ash-borer-beetles-just

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