DETROIT - It may be one of the weirdest emergency declarations ever to arrive at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but Gov. Jennifer Granholm's request for help in taking down devastated ash trees deserves a prompt and positive response.
Granholm identified the costs -- $163 million -- of removing damaged trees on public property in southeast Michigan. But she asked FEMA to declare Michigan a disaster area and make available all its resources, which include low-interest loans to home owners and businesses, along with federal personnel for any number of projects. The state could use help of all kinds.
The emerald ash borer, an Asian insect, has already ravaged millions of trees in a six-county area. But efforts to stop the invader will need to extend much farther. Outbreaks have been spotted beyond the containment area, most recently near St. Helen in Roscommon County. That puts state and federal forests directly at risk. If ever there was a time to pull out all the stops, which would mean chopping down every ash tree within a couple of miles of the find, this is it.
Time hasn't been on Michigan's side so far. Outlying infestations keep appearing, believed mostly to be from people hauling firewood or, in a few cases, infected trees from nurseries. The firewood quarantine must be much more aggressive, telling people they can't take firewood out of southeast Michigan.
The ash borer probably arrived on wood packing crates or pallets; it was first spotted in western Wayne County two years ago. The destructive pest joins an ever-growing list of invasive species that wreak havoc outside their home habitats -- and highlights how poorly equipped anyone is to deal with them. A federal disaster declaration would allow Michigan to cope with the damage and perhaps build more pressure for efforts to stop these biological disaster before they happen.
No more results found. Granholm identified the costs -- $163 million -- of removing damaged trees on public property in southeast Michigan. But she asked FEMA to declare Michigan a disaster area and make available all its resources, which include low-interest loans to home owners and businesses, along with federal personnel for any number of projects. The state could use help of all kinds.
The emerald ash borer, an Asian insect, has already ravaged millions of trees in a six-county area. But efforts to stop the invader will need to extend much farther. Outbreaks have been spotted beyond the containment area, most recently near St. Helen in Roscommon County. That puts state and federal forests directly at risk. If ever there was a time to pull out all the stops, which would mean chopping down every ash tree within a couple of miles of the find, this is it.
Time hasn't been on Michigan's side so far. Outlying infestations keep appearing, believed mostly to be from people hauling firewood or, in a few cases, infected trees from nurseries. The firewood quarantine must be much more aggressive, telling people they can't take firewood out of southeast Michigan.
The ash borer probably arrived on wood packing crates or pallets; it was first spotted in western Wayne County two years ago. The destructive pest joins an ever-growing list of invasive species that wreak havoc outside their home habitats -- and highlights how poorly equipped anyone is to deal with them. A federal disaster declaration would allow Michigan to cope with the damage and perhaps build more pressure for efforts to stop these biological disaster before they happen.