Cary in the process of removing ash trees to fight emerald ash borer

CARY During the course of the winter, workers from Trees R Us Inc. will be going through town. In the course of several minutes, the workers apply a saw toward the bottom of an ash tree to bring it down.

The logs are hauled away and some of the limbs are put through a wood chipper and turned into mulch.

The scene will repeat itself over and over in Cary as the village removes the remaining 1,800 ash trees in town to combat the infection of emerald ash borer.

Like every other town out there, our ash trees are in decline, Public Works Director Erik Morimoto said.

The village was able to get favorable per unit cost for tree removal, Morimoto said.

The contractor is expected to work through the winter and be done by the spring. As trees come down, the villages public works crews remove the stumps and prepare each tree site for landscaping.

Over the next six to seven years the village plans to replace the trees as budget funding allows, Morimoto said.

We dont want to get into a bind when whatever diseases or insects come along, Morimoto said. We want to encourage a [diversity] of trees to try to get a balance.

Morimoto said the village will be thoughtful in how it replaces trees, such as how they are spaced to make sure the trees will thrive. The intent is to replace as many as possible.

In the 1980s and 1990s, ash trees were very popular with developers. The invasive insect eventually migrated to the country and worked its way to the midwest.

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Cary in the process of removing ash trees to fight emerald ash borer