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Emerald ash borer (EAB), an invasive insect that kills ash trees, has been detected in Clark, Clay, Dearborn, Johnson and Rush counties.
These counties will be part of a new quarantine approach. Under the change, all counties within Indiana, except Crawford, Daviess, Gibson, Greene, Knox, Martin, Perry, Pike, Posey, Spencer, Sullivan, Vanderburgh and Warrick, are considered "generally infested" with EAB.
Movement of regulated ash items within that generally infested area is no longer restricted.
To move regulated materials out of that generally infested area into the counties listed as exceptions above (Crawford, Daviess, Gibson, Greene, Knox, Martin, Perry, Pike, Posey, Spencer, Sullivan, Vanderburgh and Warrick), a compliance agreement must first be obtained from the Indiana DNR.
EAB, first detected in Indiana in 2004, has now been found in more than 50 Indiana counties. The primary mode of transport for this pest is through movement of firewood in campgrounds. State entomologist Phil Marshall has recommended that movement of regulated ash material and hardwood firewood within infested counties be limited to reduce further spread of the insect.
Regulated materials include whole ash trees, limbs, branches or debris of ash trees measuring 1 inch or more in diameter, ash logs or untreated ash lumber with bark attached, and cut firewood of any hardwood species with bark attached.
An application for a compliance agreement can be filed by contacting the DNR Division of Entomology & Plant Pathology at (317) 232-4120. To view quarantined areas and EAB sightings in Indiana, see dnr.IN.gov/entomolo/5349.htm.
For more information on EAB, or to report an infestation, visit eabindiana.info or call Indiana DNR's toll-free hotline at 1-866-NO EXOTIC (663-9684). To view the EAB Rule and EAB quarantine declaration visit dnr.IN.gov/entomolo/3443.htm.
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