Tree warden warns emerald ash borer could kill town ash trees in a single season

The Little Compton tree warden told the town council that the emerald ash borer, an invasive wood-boring beetle, is present in surrounding states and will likely affect the town’s ash trees without intervention.

The tree warden described the beetle’s life cycle, how larval feeding severs the tree’s vascular system, and said that “one season infected without treatment is often enough to kill the tree.” He added that after about a 40% crown loss a tree is not savable by pesticide treatments.

The warning came during the council’s new-business presentations. The tree warden said emerald ash borer (EAB) was first noted in Michigan in 2002 and has spread across much of the eastern United States. He explained that adults are metallic green, emerge in late spring or early summer, and that larvae feed beneath the bark, disrupting the tree’s ability to move water and nutrients.

The warden told the council that the only currently viable treatment is a preemptive systemic pesticide injection (he cited imidacloprid as commonly used) administered annually and that treatment can become expensive for property owners with multiple trees. He identified the heaviest pockets of apparent infestation he has seen locally as West Main Road north, South End, Snell Road and South Collins Road.

Council members asked whether the pest can “jump” to other tree species; the tree warden said there is no local evidence of that happening and that, based on available science, the beetle primarily attacks ash. He warned that the beetle typically attacks the weakest and oldest trees first and that dead ash trees can become hazardous relatively quickly because of ash wood’s low moisture content.

The tree warden said town crews can manage ash dieback along town roads but expressed concern about getting state Department of Transportation involvement when necessary for affected roadside trees.

In response to a council question about planting, the warden recommended against planting ash trees going forward and said some individual ash trees may show resistance, but “I think it’s eventually going to attack all ash.”

The presentation closed with the warden answering procedural questions about shared photos and offering to provide residents and staff with additional information.

Local implications: the town faces a mix of property-owner decisions on treatment, more dead ash trees in public and private spaces over the coming seasons, and potential workload for public works handling hazard trees along town roads.