The City of Cape Town will host an online public meeting about the invasive Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer beetle (PSHB). Residents are encouraged to get involved in preventing the beetle from spreading even further.
Also read: PSHB: More Cape Town suburbs infested by tree-killing beetle
The tree-killing beetle poses a serious threat to the urban forest as infested trees have to be chipped. Prior to last week’s discovery in the Southern Suburbs, only trees in Somerset West had been infested.
Following the sighting of the tree-killing beetle in Newlands last week, more of the City’s suburbs have been affected, particularly Rosebank, Mowbray and Claremont with the Liesbeek River being identified as a priority pathway.
Twelve locations have been recorded as affected since Sunday, causing a great deal of concern for the city.
The City’s Deputy Mayor and Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Eddie Andrews said, “We are calling on residents, interest groups and experts to assist the City to prevent this pest from spreading even further. The beetle is threatening our urban forest. This is a very serious and alarming situation as infested trees need to be chipped. I want to caution our communities not to be complacent, and to inspect all trees on private properties for symptoms of infestation.”
“It is very important to note that infested trees may not be removed from the property as the removal of the chipped wood will spread the pest to other areas.”
Alderman Andrews added that experts from the Invasive Species Unit will give important information on how to identify possible infestations, where to report it, and how to handle the chipped biomass at the online meeting. He urges residents to attend the meeting if possible to help get rid of the beetle infestation.
Details for the online meeting:
- It will be hosted on Microsoft Teams
- Date: Tuesday, 7 February 2023
- Time: 6.30pm until 8.00pm
- RSVP: https://forms.gle/T7mUexES6Qi9sHnd9
- To join, click here: Click here to join the meeting
The City of Cape Town released the following update on the PSHB infestation in Cape Town:
- A Boxelder tree infested with the invasive Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer beetle (PSHB) was discovered on a private property in Newlands on 24 January 2023.
- Since then, the Invasive Species Unit has been conducting assessments in the Newlands, Rondebosch, Mowbray and Claremont areas.
- The Liesbeek River has been identified as a priority pathway, and the City has allocated resources to conduct assessments to determine the extent and distribution of the beetle in the area.
- The City will soon commence with the removal of infested trees on City-owned land – these are public open spaces, river corridors, green belts, road verges, and public parks.
- Unfortunately, the only way to prevent the spreading of the invasive beetle is to chip affected trees, carefully remove the biomass under cover of heavy-duty plastic and incinerate it at an appropriate site. The use of pesticides and fungicides has a very limited effect.
- A PSHB beetle infestation was first discovered in Oldenland Road, Somerset West, in an ailing London plane in March 2019. To date, only trees in the Somerset West area have been affected and removed. The recent sightings in Newlands and its surroundings are very alarming.
Alderman Andrews says the PSHB infestation in Cape Town is extremely concerning. The beetle can easily spread across suburbs if extra precaution is not taken. Apart from infested wood, the 2mm big borer beetle can also spread through clothing, vehicle crevices, or unclean horticultural equipment.
Report PSHB beetle sightings through the following channels:
- Online, at capetown.gov.za/InvasiveSpecies
- Call the City of Cape Town’s Invasive Species Unit on 021 444 2357, Monday to Friday, from 07.30 am to 4.00 pm
- Send an email to: [email protected]
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Picture: Cape{town}Etc Library