DeLauro Receives Status Briefing on Emerald Ash Borer Beetle

Tours Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station

NEW HAVEN, CT—Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) today received a status briefing on the emerald ash borer beetle and toured the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES). DeLauro was accompanied by CAES Director Louis Magnarelli and Connecticut’s State Entomologist, Dr. Kirby Stafford.

“For the past several years parts of our country have been struggling with the infestation of emerald ash borers,” DeLauro said. “Unfortunately, these small, green, invasive beetles have now come to Connecticut. The CT Agricultural Experiment Station and the CT Department of Environmental Protection have been working with federal officials to figure out how big the outbreak is and I appreciate Louis Magnarelli and Dr. Kirby Stafford taking the time to show me around today.

“Later this week, they will formally announce a quarantine of wood products from New Haven County, which will help prevent the spread of emerald ash borer to other parts of Connecticut. Once officials have finished determining the extent of the infestation, we will have a better idea of how many trees are infested and can move forward on addressing the problem.”

CAES, and the Entomology Department in particular, has been researching how to stop the emerald ash borer from devastating Connecticut’s ash tree population, as it has already done to over 50 million trees in states from the Great Lakes Region across to Pennsylvania, New York and Virginia. One possibility is with a specific breed of wasp, which does not sting people and hunts the family of beetles of which the emerald ash borer is a member. The emerald ash borer is believed to have come to the U.S. from China and has no natural predators in North America. Insecticides are also a viable option for homeowners to protect their ash trees.