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Sharon Lucik (810) 844-2713

Jerry Redding (202) 720-4623

**USDA EXPANDS EMERALD ASH BORER QUARANTINE IN**

**ILLINOIS, INDIANA AND OHIO**

WASHINGTON, Nov. 21, 2006\--The U. S. Department of Agriculture's Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service today announced the expansion of its
emerald ash borer (EAB) quarantine to include the entire states of
Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, more than doubling the previously
quarantined area which includes the entire lower peninsula of Michigan.
The new quarantine becomes effective on Dec. 1 following the issuance of
a federal order. 

APHIS is expanding the quarantine in response to the destructive nature
of this invasive plant pest and the significant threat it poses to the
ash resource in our nation's forests and residential landscapes.  The
quarantine regulations will help to mitigate the spread of the pest
while the science community continues to work to develop solutions to
combat EAB, including improved detection and control strategies.  The
ultimate goal is to eradicate this pest from North America.

To date, USDA has spent more than \$100 million on research, eradication
and reforestation efforts.  USDA estimates that if EAB is not contained
or eradicated, it has the potential to cost state and local governments
approximately \$7 billion over the next 25 years to remove and replace
dead and dying ash trees that can pose a safety hazard in urban and
suburban areas.

Today's federal order restricts the interstate movement of regulated
articles that originate within the quarantine area.  Regulated articles
include ash nursery stock and green lumber; any other ash material
including logs, stumps, roots, branches, as well as composted and
uncomposted wood chips.  Due to the difficulty in distinguishing between
species of hardwood firewood, all hardwood firewood, including ash, oak,
maple and hickory are regulated articles.

Three years of EAB survey data support the need to implement strict
regulations for the movement of host material. Survey methods are not
100 percent effective for early detection of the pest, and given this
uncertainty, the possibility of spreading EAB in unprocessed host
material presents a serious risk that requires immediate action.

APHIS is working closely with the states affected with EAB and those
border states to address this invasive species. The federal interstate
movement restrictions associated with the quarantine augments state
quarantines in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio that regulate the movement of
firewood and ash wood products within those states. 

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APHIS also works cooperatively with state agriculture and forestry
agencies, universities, landscape, nursery, and other affected
industries and the international scientific community to develop
strategies for the detection, control and eradication of EAB.

EAB is an invasive species wood boring beetle, native to China and
eastern Asia, which targets ash trees. EAB probably arrived in North
America hidden in wood packing materials

commonly used to ship consumer and other goods. It was first detected in
July 2002 in southeastern Michigan and has since been found in Ohio,
Indiana, Maryland and Illinois.

Everyday human activity facilitates the long distance spread of EAB,
expanding the extent and range of the infestation in North America. The
movement of ash tree products has been found to advance the spread of
EAB. Currently, EAB is responsible for the death and decline of more 25
million ash trees in the United States. 

For more information on EAB and APHIS' expanded quarantine, please visit
www.aphis.usda.gov.

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