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Nov 30, 2023

Wood incinerator potential key to slowing spread of emerald ash borer

State water, air and forestry officials are hopeful that a new wood-burning

State water, air and forestry officials are hopeful that a new wood-burning device can help slow the spread of the invasive emerald ash borer beetle, not to mention added bonuses of reduced air pollution.

Emerald ash borers (EABs), first found in Oregon in 2022, have been decimating ash tree groves across the United States. With its presence now seen in Oregon, state agencies are looking to new ways to combat the spread of the beetle that could spell doom for native Oregon ash trees.

Wyatt Williams, an invasive species specialist with Oregon Department of Forestry, points to a hole where an emerald ash borer, a highly destructive invasive forest beetle, exits from when the weather warms up.

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Wood burns in an air curtain incinerator in late May at the Fernhill Wetlands in Forest Grove. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, Oregon Department of Forestry and Clean Water Services, were present to test for pollutants from the emissions from the incinerator.

Charcoal from an air curtain incinerator can be used to filter water.

The Oregon Department of Agriculture was on site May 25 at Lincoln Park in Forest Grove to watch two ash trees that were infested with emerald ash borers get taken down. Oregon State University masters students studying entomology were on hand to learn to signs and symptoms of emerald ash borer infestations.

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