Thousands of ash trees have fallen across Hamilton

TheSpec.com
April 30, 2015
Mark McNeil

The city's forestry department has removed more than 6,700 diseased ash trees infested by the Emerald ash borer since 2013 but has fallen well short of its goal of replacing them with other tree species.

A total of 22,000 trees are scheduled to fall, in a 10-year plan to deal with the devastation. The department says it's committed to planting one new tree for every one taken down but so far has managed only one replacement for every three removed.

An update to the public works committee from Steven Barnhart, manager of forestry and horticulture, says only 1,946 replacement trees have been planted.

Spokesperson Bill Longley says department staff are "hoping to bridge that gap somewhat this year ... the reason for the lag is because it takes time to remove the stumps and do the subsequent planting."

The committee's chair, Coun. Sam Merulla, said the department has not been able to keep pace because it doesn't have the budget it needs.

"Everything comes down to resources. We have more challenges than money. The reality is we are doing the best we can under the circumstances."

Merulla believes the Ministry of Natural Resources should provide funding to local governments to deal with removal and replacement. But so far, the provincial ministry has refused.

"This should be dealt with on a province-wide level," Merulla said. "This is an issue in all municipalities in the province."

The Emerald ash borer is an invasive insect from Asia, first discovered in Canada in Windsor in 2002. It spread quickly throughout Ontario and most of Quebec.

The bug was first noticed in Hamilton in February 2009 on the central Mountain. Today, the city says, ash trees in all areas of the community are infested and the resulting tree removal has left gaping holes in the urban canopy.

The city is replacing the ash trees with a wide range of species including ginkgo, Eastern redbud, autumn blaze maple and tulip trees. The hope is to limit the destruction the next time a devastatingly invasive insect comes along.