Emerald ash borers have been discovered in downtown Traverse City on the campus of Northwestern Michigan College.
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The destructive bug was discovered last month near the Oleson Center when representatives from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Michigan State University were on campus for an educational meeting.
A thorough investigation revealed dozens of trees were infected and now the university is taking action.
"Right now all we are doing is cutting down the trees that are heavily infested," says director of campus services Ed Bailey, "So we're cutting them down, cutting them up and then we are destroying them."
The emerald ash borer was first discovered in the Detroit area in 2002.
Symptoms include leaf die-off beginning at the top of the trees, vertical splits in the bark, increased woodpecker activity, and D-shaped holes where adult ash borers exit the tree.
