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Residents cautioned about removing wood from Asian Longhorned beetle quarantine area Oyster Bay Town Councilman Angelo A. Delligatti cautions residents who live in the Asian Longhorned Beetle Quarantine Area about selling or taking tree material out of the quarantine area for use as firewood. "While homeowners may think that selling wood or taking it to a second home for firewood is okay because the burning of the wood will destroy any beetle infestation that may be present, it is not permitted under the rules of the quarantine," Councilman Delligatti stated. "The reason is that if the wood is infested, which may not be visible to the homeowner, moving it out of the area could spread this devastating insect pest." In 1996, there was an infestation of Asian Longhorned Beetles in areas of Massapequa and Amityville. These destructive insects burrow in the trunks and branches of trees, generally hardwoods. Once a tree is infested, there is no way to save it. There is currently a quarantine in the Massapequa/North Massapequa area of the Town where the beetle has been detected, inclusive of several blocks north of Southern State Parkway, several blocks west of Broadway/North Broadway, east to the Town line and south to Great South Bay. The quarantine regulates the movement of wood from the area to stem the spread of the beetle. The Town developed the plan, which was then approved by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. "While it has been effective," Councilman Delligatti commented, "we are not out of the woods, so to speak, and must remain vigilant because this resourceful and resilient verdure varmint has been popping up in new communities across the country." Tree material in the quarantine area must be placed at the curb for collection by Town crews on sanitation collection days. When you place wood at the curb, it is not collected with your regular garbage. Drivers record the address of the home where the wood has been left. Then, either later that day or the following workday, it is picked up and taken to the Town Highway Yard on Carman Mill Road, Massapequa, where it is ground into wood chips. This way, if there is any beetle infestation, it is not passed along.
"So far, our efforts to stop the beetles' spread outside the quarantine area have been effective, but there have been new sightings within the quarantine area, so we must continue to be on the alert," Councilman DelligattI stated. "If you have any questions about the Asian Longhorned Beetle Quarantine regulations, please contact the United States Department of Agriculture's Cooperative Asian Longhorned Beetle Project at its toll-free number, 1-866- 265-0301."
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