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Another 751 ash trees coming down

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Dead and dying ash trees are slowly but surely disappearing from the landscape in Norfolk County.

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The third phase of ash removal this year involves 751 trees on public property and will cost $142,500.

Norfolk council recently awarded the 2018 contract to Kodiak Tree Services of Ancaster.

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“Forestry staff have identified high-risk ash trees along main rural roads in addition to trees adjacent to residential lots in rural areas that should be removed,” Norfolk forestry supervisor Adam Biddle said in a report to council.

“These trees are dead or dying and present a significant risk to the public living within these areas and travelling county roads.”

The county received two bids to do the work. The bid of $626,871 from Davey Tree Expert Co. of Canada was nearly five times higher than the Kodiak bid.

Ash trees were common and abundant in southern Ontario until the emerald ash borer swept through the province several years ago.

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The ash borer is an invasive species native to Asia. It is believed to have arrived in North America in infested packaging material in the early 1990s. Its presence in this part of the continent was confirmed in 2002. Because it has no natural enemies in North America, the ash borer has been free to run unimpeded through the native ash population.

The borer drills into ash trees and lays eggs. The larvae hatch and eat portions of the tree critical to transporting nutrients and water between root and canopy.

The ash borer is headed toward the East Coast of North America. Authorities believe the rampage won’t end until the insect reaches the Atlantic Ocean and runs out of trees to feed on.

MSonnenberg@postmedia.com

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