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Globe Editorial
Asian longhorned beetles have already caused the destruction of more than 25,000 trees in and around Worcester, but the government’s effort to eradicate these invaders has run afoul of environmentalists and beekeepers who fear collateral damage to other insects. Still, the beetles pose an imminent threat to trees all over New England. To keep them from spreading to other forested areas beyond Worcester, officials are right to inject pesticide into trees and soil - even at the risk of harming bees.
The beetles, which likely entered the United States years ago in wood shipping crates or pallets from China, have no natural predator in this country. For now, the pesticide imidacloprid is crucial to controlling them. But there hasn’t been enough research on how to minimize its effects on bees, which are important not just for their honey but because they pollinate Central Massachusetts’s many apple orchards. So civic-minded local beekeepers have begun a controlled experiment. They have moved 25 of their hives to Framingham, outside of the area where the pesticide is being used, and left 25 in the affected area.
US Department of Agriculture officials have already used imidacloprid on Asian longhorned beetles in other states. Nowhere, though, have scientists and beekeepers collaborated on a study like this one. With better information than scientists now have on the timing and dosage of pesticide application, it might be possible to protect both trees and the bees. The crucial step now, though, is to stop the beetles before they move deeper into the region.
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.
