Dead trees standing?

By Scott NeufeldMonday, March 12, 2007, http://www.dailycourier.ca/article_1026.php

Vernon city council will decide today whether to spend $62,000 this year to protect the city’s pines with no guarantee that any of the trees can be saved.The city’s finance committee has put together a plan to protect more than 1,000 trees on city-owned land from the pine beetle epidemic. Although none of the proposed methods are certain to protect the trees, Coun. Juliette Cunningham said the expenditure is worth it.“There aren’t any guarantees of course, but we feel that because of the size, because of the historic value of the trees we have to do something to try and save them,” Cunningham said. “We may get lucky and save most of them.”

In order to implement the plan, however, the city must find an additional $40,000 somewhere in the city budget. The city had only set aside $22,000 for pine beetle programs this year. Extra money may be pulled from the public works reserve but Cunningham said the program isn’t a done deal yet.“This is just a recommendation from the finance committee,” she said. “Council still has to take a look at it.”

The plan proposes two methods of preventing the beetle from devouring the city’s historic pines including wrapping the trees and using repellent. Wrapping involves cloaking the first 30 feet of the tree with a plastic mesh. Although this method has proven effective against the mountain pine beetle, western pine beetle often attacks the tree above the 30 foot line.Repellent involves attaching pouches to high risk trees. This method is not effective when beetle populations are high, but the beetle population in Vernon is believed to be in the low to moderate range, according to the city. Repellent must also be applied annually to have any effect and under the city plan would cost $11,675 each year.

More than 650 of the trees included in the pine beetle program are located at the Pleasant Valley Cemetery. The plan proposes wrapping 208 trees and using repellent on another 451. The total cost at the cemetery alone is $55,575.“For me it wasn’t acceptable to not try to stop it,” Cunningham said. “I think some of these trees are over 100 years old.”Trees listed as being of high importance will be wrapped and have repellent. Residents could soon see trees wrapped at City Hall, Ranger Park, Justice Court Park, near Village Green Mall and several other locations