St. Paul will start cutting down more ash trees in the western part of the city next month, as part of its effort to stop the emerald ash borer infestation that was first noticed in 2009.
Two public meetings will be held to tell residents more about the program.
The meetings are:
- Thursday, Jan. 24, 6 p.m., Hillcrest Recreation Center, 1978 Ford Parkway
- Jan. 29, 6 p.m., Dayton's Bluff Recreation Center, 800 Conway St.
The city says there are about 30,000 ash trees in the city, about 30 percent of the city's overall trees, and a "structured removal" of infected trees will start in February.
This phase of the city's ash borer plan will remove trees that are not yet suffering from the insect infestation, but are damaged in other ways, from drought, salt or defects, and would be susceptible to the insects.
And while city officials are treating some trees with an insecticide, they say that only works to slow the disease.
The city's website has maps of the areas that will be targeted for ash removal.