Ash borer found in Champaign for first time
CHAMPAIGN — The emerald ash borer is working its way across Illinois with confirmation of the insect's spread to Champaign.
The city of Champaign confirmed this week that one of the insects has been found in the city. Ash borer larvae feed on the bark of ash trees and are believed to have killed tens of millions of the trees since the bugs were first discovered in Detroit in 2002.
The News-Gazette newspaper in Champaign reports the city has been anticipating the bugs for years. Planting of new ash trees was already prohibited on public property and many trees that were in poor health had already been removed.
Champaign County was designated a quarantine zone after an ash borer was found in Rantoul in 2010.
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