Pest bores in state ash trees
As if spruce beetles and sudden aspen decline aren't enough, trees in Colorado now have another enemy to contend with. The highly destructive emerald ash borer has been confirmed in the state, where ash species comprise an estimated 15-20 percent of all trees.
Already responsible for the death or decline of tens of millions of ash trees in more than 20 states, the borer was detected in Boulder and is said to pose a serious threat to Colorado’s urban forests.
Although EAB has not been detected in western Colorado, and the Rocky Mountains are believed to form a natural barrier to the spread of the insect, the region remains at risk due to the potential spread through human actions, such as the movement of firewood.
To help homeowners and communities avoid or deal with the invasive pest, the Colorado State Forest Service offers these tips to Western Slope residents:
- Know how to identify an ash tree. Ash trees have diamond-shaped bark ridges, compound leaves with five to 11 leaflets, and their leaflets, buds and branches grow directly opposite one another.
- Avoid planting ash trees anywhere in Colorado. Furthermore, spring is a good time to plant tree species where ash trees growing now could be lost in the future.
- Recognize signs of EAB infestation: thinning of upper branches and twigs; loss of leaves; D-shaped 1/8-inch holes on the bark; vertical bark splitting or increased woodpecker activity.
- Be aware of EAB imposters. Other insects like lilac/ash borer, ash bark beetle and flat-headed appletree borer may look like EAB or cause similar symptoms.
- Treatments to protect ash trees are not recommended more than 5 miles from a positive detection. Currently, with the only confirmed detection in the City of Boulder, homeowners on the Western Slope need not apply chemical treatments to protect ash trees from EAB.
- Prevent spread by never transporting ash firewood, or any other untreated ash product, to other locations.
Any suspect trees should be reported to the Colorado Department of Agriculture at 888-248-5535 or email CAPS.program@state.co.us. For more information about EAB, go to www.csfs.colostate.edu or pick up a free copy at the nearest CSFS district. For current updates on EAB in Colorado, go to www.eabcolorado.com
Puebloan sites on endangered list
Ancestral Puebloan sites may have outlived the drought that is thought to have caused their inhabitants to flee centuries ago, but this time, they may not be so lucky.
A report released this week by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), finds that historic sites throughout the country, including Mesa Verde National Park, are at risk for being lost to climate change. According to the report, “National Landmarks at Risk," 30 sites are at risk of disappearing, including places where the “first Americans” lived, the Spaniards ruled, English colonists landed, slavery rose and fell, and gold prospectors struck it rich.
“The result is a tragic loss of invaluable cultural and historic resources that make up a key part of the American story," report co-author and director of climate impacts at UCS Adam Markham said.
In the Southwest, worsening wildfires and flooding are threatening archaeological sites such as Mesa Verde, a World Heritage Site, as well as Bandelier National Monument and the nearby Santa Clara Pueblo, both in New Mexico.
During the last decade and a half, massive fires have swept through these sites, damaging pueblos and artifacts.
“Forest fires are a healthy part of Southwestern forests, but the large landscape-scale fires that are burning now are outside the normal historic range – they are bigger, hotter and more damaging,” Anastasia Steffen, an archaeologist at Valles Caldera National Preserve in Jemez, N.M., said. Steffen, an adjunct professor of anthropology at the University of New Mexico, serves on a group working to protect Southwestern archaeological sites from fires.
Heavy rain events, also associated with climate change, are also a concern. “Cultural deposits that have remained intact for millennia are now washing away, dissolving the archaeological record of past environmental fluctuations as well how these peoples adapted,” she said.
The damage is particularly acute when heavy rains occur after wildfires, leaving the ground incapable of absorbing water and leading to flooding. Such a scenario took place when the Las Conchas fire in 2011 was followed by heavy monsoons. To control the run-off, the nearby Santa Clara Pueblo was forced to build retaining ponds, which may push the pueblo into bankruptcy. If the Pueblo doesn’t build the ponds, nearby communities could experience destructive flooding.
At-risk sites in other parts of the country are being affected by sea level rise, worsening storm surge, more intense hurricanes, melting sea ice and thawing permafrost.
“You can almost trace the history of the United States through these sites,” said Markham. “The imminent risks to these sites threaten to pull apart the quilt that tells the story of our nation’s heritage and history.”
The Society for American Archaeology issued a statement in conjunction with the report, calling for more attention to preserving archaeological sites, marking the first time the organization has brought attention to climate change.
The report also called for the reduction of carbon emissions as well a funding for President Obama’s proposed Climate Resilience Fund, which could help make these sites more resilient to climate change.
– Missy Votel