AKWESASNE -- The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe has found the emerald ash borer in the southern portion of Akwesasne.

The tribe’s Forestry Resources Program and the United States Department of Agriculture’s Animal Plant Health Inspection found the invasive species in a trap on a tribal member’s property on state Route 37.

“The tribe’s Environment Division has been monitoring the spread of emerald ash borer (EAB) since 2003,” Environment Division Assistant Director Les Benedict said in a news release. “It was most recently identified in the territory on Cornwall Island in 2015 and earlier confirmed in the City of Cornwall in 2013. We have been surveying the community for EAB since 2008 because of earlier confirmations in the Kingston Ontario area.”

The emerald ash borer is an invasive beetle native to Asia that was accidentally introduced to the United States. Since its discovery in Michigan in 2002, the destructive pest has been responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of ash trees across the country, the tribe said.

“The extent of the EAB infestation is unknown at this time,” forest conservation technician Aaron Barrigar said in the release. “One beetle was found in one trap, so in order to determine the EAB population Tom Colarusso from the USDA’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service and myself will be cutting and peeling the suspected-EAB infested tree. After peeling, we will be able to better characterize the situation and generate a threat based management response.”

It is anticipated that the bugs’ presence will have an economic, ecological, social and cultural impact on the community of Akwesasne. In preparation, the tribe says their Forestry Resources Program have taken several steps. They includes ash seed collection, an ash importation permit, early detection rapid response forest pest trapping, the ash mitigation project and the creation of the “Akwesasne Mohawk Territory Emerald Ash Borer Community Response Plan.”

The tribe’s Environment Division has been working with the community groups, including the Akwesasne Task Force on the Environment and the Akwesasne Cultural Center, to develop plans to deal with the insect and its impacts to Black Ash trees and basket-making. They will also be working in partnership with multiple agencies to implement additional response actions and strategies, which will be a coordinated effort to delay and protect the Akwesasne community’s remaining Ash trees.

Travel corridors represent the greatest risk for the introduction of EAB due to the potential for transport of infested wood products, such as firewood. As a result, tribal officials say community members are encouraged to join efforts to prevent the spread of EAB by limiting the importation of firewood into the community. They encourage people to only use locally sourced firewood.

People can bet more information from the SRMT Environment Division’s Forestry Resources Program at 449 Frogtown Road, or calling (518) 358-5937 or email Barrigar at aaron.barrigar@srmt-nsn.gov.