Miesbach - Even if winter is not the time of the Asian longhorn beetle (ALB), people are still looking for it.
The tree climbers use the leaf-free time to carefully examine the specified woody plants that serve as host plants for the pest.
“We are now coming to the end,” says Gerhard Kraus.
In winter, the focus zone - that is, the area within 500 meters of the discovery sites around the tax office - was examined with climbers, and the second round follows in the summer months.
In addition, soil monitoring is carried out in the entire quarantine zone - that is a radius of 2.1 kilometers - in which the entire area is to be checked within one year.
The area supervisor from the State Office for Agriculture (LfL) in Freising, which is in charge of the fight against the pest, is satisfied with the way things have gone so far: nothing has been found.
A good sign, because it means that there doesn't have to be any further felling - not to mention an extension of the four-year quarantine period.
As reported, no deciduous wood is allowed to leave the quarantine zone during the quarantine period - it will last until December 2024 without further finds.
Cuttings must be handed in centrally to the collection point on Waitzinger Wiese - delivery to the VIVO recycling center is also not possible.
Checks also in Warngau, Hausham and Bruckmühl
However, this was definitely the case in previous years, in which the ALB had been up to mischief in Miesbach undiscovered.
“The citizens also drove their green goods to Hausham on the Brenten,” summarizes Kraus, “also to the recycling center in the district town and to the VIVO headquarters in Warngau.” For this reason, these three stations are now also being examined for traces of the beetle.
Another point of interest is the Bruckmühl recycling center in the neighboring district of Rosenheim.
“We want to control the environment there too,” says Kraus.
"In general, it is conceivable that green waste with beetles or larvae was delivered there and the ALB has also spread there." This risk needs to be clarified.
The situation has already been checked twice on the Brenten - luckily without success.
"But we want to do a third test before the leaves come back." In the summer, the leaves are checked.
Search dogs for soil monitoring are also included.
Kraus has had reinforcements in his work.
His new colleague Philipp Neumann was previously deployed in Murnau.
The work is finished there, the quarantine expired without any further findings.
Just as it should work in Miesbach.
ddy
Information on ALB trees
can be found online at www.lfl.bayern.de/alb.