All ash trees to be removed from Bedford park due to insect infestation

Halifax Regional Municipality will begin to remove 80 ash trees from DeWolf Park in Bedford starting Monday.

Many of the trees are dead or in poor condition due to damage caused by the emerald ash borer, a beetle that feeds on thespecies.

"Unfortunately, all the ash trees here are infested and about 75 per cent of them are completely dead already," said Kevin Osmond, HRM'ssenior supervisor of urban forestry. "Twenty-five per cent of them are still showing some signs of life with some leaves on them, but they are already infested."

This is not a new problem for the park that is located on the shore of Bedford Basin. The insects were were first detected there four years ago.

Tree removal and stump grinding is expected to take 3-4 weeks. The trees will be replaced by other species over time.

"It is on the move up through Bedford but we haven't found it anywhere else in HRM yet," Osmondsaid of the emerald ash borer. "Once it is into an area, it is impossible to eradicate."

The emerald ash borer is native to northeastern Asia.Once a tree is infested with beetle larvae, the tree declines quickly, typically dying within three years.