BRODHEAD, Wis (WSAU-Wheeler News) The tree-killing emerald ash borer has been confirmed in Green County for the first time.
State agriculture officials said yesterday that the green beetle was found in a private yard near Brodhead, in the town of Decatur. The homeowner called the D-N-R after seeing woodpecker damage, and tell-tale serpentine tunneling made by infected larvae.
Green County was already under an E-A-B quarantine, because the bug had been found in a neighboring county. 37 of the state’s 72 counties are under the quarantine. It means that people cannot take firewood from quarantined counties to those without quarantines. Also, commercial ash products must be certified as pest-free before they can be sold in non-quarantined counties.
The ash borer is native to China and first appeared in the U-S in Michigan in 2002. Its presence was confirmed in Wisconsin six years later.
