CATTARAUGUS COUNTY - With the recent discovery of the emerald ash borer (EAB) in 39 trees just next door in Cattaraugus County, U.S. Senator Charles Schumer Wednesday offered a plan to fight the spread of the invasive species that is threatening the forests and trees across Upstate New York and the Northeast region.

The plan directs funding to organizations equipped with the resources to fight the insect as well as raise awareness about suppression, eradication, and control of the spread. Schumer’s three point plan will increase funding available to New York from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Forest Service and raise public awareness of this emerging threat. 

“Invasive species are a blight on our economy and our ecosystem, with the potential to wreck havoc for businesses in a number of industries, including furniture makers, lumber mills and sporting goods manufacturers,” said Schumer. “Even our national past time itself is at stake; the border between Pennsylvania and the Southern Tier is home to millions of ash trees used to produce the high quality baseball bats used by major leaguers.  Protecting our trees and forests from the Emerald Ash Borer is critical to the continued economic and cultural vitality of the region and it is imperative that we fund ways to fight it and raise awareness about how to control the spread.”

The Emerald Ash Borer is a bright green beetle that kills trees by burrowing into their bark and destroying the trees’ ability to bring water from the roots to upper branches. Infected trees usually begin to die within two to three years. Currently EAB has been found in Cattaraugus County in 39 trees, all of which have been destroyed.