Lombard Receives Grant to Replace Trees Lost to the Emerald Ash Borer

The $20,000 grant will allow the Lombard Public Works Department to plant more than 60 parkway trees this fall at or near the locations where the infested Ash trees were removed. The purpose of the grant is to create a more diverse urban forest that will reduce the risk of an invasive pest such as EAB eliminating an entire species. Ten different tree species will be offered this fall. The source of the funding for this award is the 2008 Farm Bill Pest and Disease Revolving Loan Fund.

EAB was first detected in Lombard in 2009. Since that time, more than 100 infested parkway trees have been removed and staff estimates that at least another 200 will be removed in 2012. White and Green Ash currently make up about 15% of the total parkway tree population, with Green Ash being the most abundant species found throughout the Village.

For more information on EAB, visit www.villageoflombard.org or call Lombard Public Works Department at (630) 620-5740.