The third and final phase of the 2005 Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) statewide detection tree program has begun.

Earlier this year, about 12,000 detection trees were selected at varying densities in nearly every township in the Upper and Lower Peninsulas to serve as an early detection system for potential EAB infestations outside of the 20 quarantined counties in southeast Michigan.

The detection trees were established to attract and capture adult beetles present in a specific area. According to the Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA), the trees do not lure the bug from long distances nor create new infestations.

The project was based on recommendations from the EAB National Science Advisory Panel and implemented by MDA and the Department Natural Resources, in cooperation with local conservation district foresters and Michigan Technological University.

“This detection program is an important tool for alerting us to potential beetle infestations outside of the known EAB area,” said MDA Director Mitch Irwin. “Crews are returning to each of these areas, cutting down the trees, and peeling the bark looking for signs of EAB. If infestations are found, we will implement an effective and timely response strategy.”

Director Irwin added that it is possible that additional pockets of infestations may be found outside of the known infested areas in southeast Michigan and the 27 quarantined outliers across the state during the removal and examination of the detection trees. The detection tree removal process should be completed by early December.

“As we continue our EAB response efforts it’s imperative that Michigan residents, tourists, and businesses adhere to the state’s quarantine,” said Patricia Lockwood, EAB policy director for Governor Jennifer Granholm. “It’s only with continued support and compliance that we will be able to halt the further spread and subsequent devastation to the state’s natural resources and economic growth.”

Emerald Ash Borer is an exotic insect native to Asia that attacks ash trees and was unknown on the North American continent until its discovery in Michigan in 2002.

The insect has already devastated an estimated 15 million ash trees in southeast Michigan and continues to destroy trees in Michigan. Additionally, other localized areas in various counties and communities have been infested due mainly to the movement of firewood, including Brimley’s state park last month, the first known EAB case in the Upper Peninsula.

For more information about the EAB detection tree project or Michigan’s response efforts, go online to MDA’s Web site at www.michigan.gov/eab .