ONTARIO PROTECTS FOREST HEALTH

For Immediate Release
April 16, 2008

ONTARIO PROTECTS FOREST HEALTH
McGuinty Government Approves Of New Tool To Fight Emerald Ash Borer

NEWS

A new product based on a natural chemical will help in the fight to protect trees from the emerald ash borer.

TreeAzinTM is an environmentally safe insecticide that can be used to protect yard or street trees, as well as trees in arboretums and golf courses or in isolated infestations.  When injected into the trunk of a tree, it inhibits the growth of larvae and prevents the emergence of adult emerald ash borer.

Following research trials with Natural Resources Canada, the Ministry of Natural Resources received approval from Health Canada and the Ontario Ministry of the Environment for the use of TreeAzinTM.  It is now available through BioForest Technologies Inc. and tree care companies to protect trees from emerald ash borer.

QUOTES

“This product will be an important new tool in our ongoing fight to control the spread of destructive forest pests and protect the health of Ontario trees,” said Natural Resources Minister Donna Cansfield.

“Our government recognizes that scientific breakthroughs with commercial applications like this will have significant environmental and economic benefits for Sault Ste. Marie and the province as a whole,” said David Orazietti, MPP for Sault Ste. Marie.  “Today’s announcement reaffirms our community’s position as a national leader in forestry and shows the value of provincial support for research and innovation.”

QUICK FACTS

• TreeAzinTM is a 100 per cent made-in-Ontario product, developed in Sault Ste. Marie and Burlington.
• TreeAzinTM is a botanical insecticide based on an active ingredient extracted from the neem tree of India.
• The emerald ash borer is an invasive insect species that was first found in North America in June 2002 in Detroit, Michigan and, shortly after, in Windsor, Ontario.
• The emerald ash borer can kill healthy ash trees in only one to two years when infestations of its larvae are severe.  The larvae create tunnels when they feed under the bark of trees and prevent nutrients from travelling down from the leaves.

LEARN MORE

TreeAzinTM – developed by the Canadian Forest Service in collaboration with BioForest Technologies Inc. and owned by the Canadian Forest Service – is under worldwide licence to BioForest Technologies Inc. (which developed the EcoJect® System for its application, and is available from tree care companies.

More information on Emerald Ash Borer and other invasive alien species can be found at www.inspection.gc.ca.

Find out how Ontario is dealing with invasive forest pests by visiting www.ontariosforests.mnr.gov.on.ca and clicking on ‘Forest Health.’

For More Information

Media Enquiries

David Bauer, Minister’s Office, 416-314-2212

Jolanta Kowalski, Communications Services Branch, 416-314-2106

General Enquiries

Natural Resources Information Centre
1-800-667-1940
TTY 1-866-686-6072 (Hearing Impaired)