Emerald Ash Borer

The emerald ash borer (EAB) is a small metallic green beetle native to Asia that caused the death of many ash trees across the country in the early 2000s. Following the confirmation of the presence of emerald ash borer (EAB) in Roselle in 2010, a "stem by stem" tree inventory was completed to provide data for the development of an EAB management plan.

Representatives from Graf Tree Care, a St. Charles based company that employs certified arborists who specialize in conducting tree inventories and developing EAB management plans, visited every tree on Village owned property to collect data, including tree species and condition of the tree. The Village of Roselle began treating 640 publicly owned ash trees in 2011 as part of an Emerald Ash Borer Management Plan officially adopted by the Village Board.

The Village of Roselle continued contracting with Graf Tree Care for several years to assist the Public Works Forestry Division in managing the Village’s tree populations. In 2019,  three particular areas of focus for Roselle’s “community forest” were identified, including emerald ash borer (EAB) management, reforestation planting, and updating the Village’s tree inventory.

During the original tree inventory in 2010, approximately 2,200 open planting spaces were identified on parkways throughout the Village. Between 2011 and 2019, approximately 1,100 ash trees were removed, resulting in a total of 3,000 open planting spaces. The Village's Reforestation Planting Plan takes into consideration current and projected species diversity, spatial diversity, and age class diversity. The goal is to create a healthy community forest in Roselle for the long term.

Each spring since 2011, all of the Village’s publicly owned ash trees have been evaluated as part of the EAB Management Program. The Village began treating ash trees deemed to be in good condition back in 2012 against EAB infestations. The ash trees in the treatment set are evaluated for continued treatment annually, and untreated ash trees are evaluated and scheduled for removal if necessary.

During the 2019 tree inventory, it was found that all of the 559 ash trees in the treatment set were found to be in good condition again this season. Approximately 30 untreated ash trees remain on Roselle’s parkways. They are being evaluated to determine if they will be removed this year, or if they are healthy enough to be retained for another season. The location of the publicly owned ash trees included in the treatment group is available for download here (PDF), and the treated trees have been tagged with an aluminum marker.