Suzanne Oel – Division 4
Happy New Year!
Sharing my News Update…
Spruce Budworm decline in 2022-2023: I’d like to start the New Year off with some good news! Back in 2021, after hearing from concerned residents about a growing spruce budworm infestation, I attended the Bragg Creek meeting on July 6th and brought the discussion to Foothills County Council the following day. I asked for our Agricultural Services Department to assess, work with our Provincial experts and provide recommendations. Council agreed to that. On November 29, 2021, Foothills County then hosted a public workshop with presentations from experts. As a follow-up, our Agricultural Fieldman prepared a summary of information, which is posted on the Ag Services page on the Foothills County website. We have also taken photos and asked residents to supply their photos – to bank some evidence.
The County has continued to monitor the situation with our neighbouring municipalities and the Province, and offers to provide advice to our residents through our Agricultural Services Fieldman, Caleb Scott. In 2021 and 2022, we shared news updates to residents, including a caution that residents, who may consider the use of insecticide intervention, be aware of collateral issues. Due to the seriousness of applying insecticides, please check the details on the product label and on our website, which includes more about insecticides, complaint- reporting, alternatives to insecticide use and contact info for our Agricultural Services Department. Please visit: www.foothillscountyab.ca/services/agriculture/spruce-budworm
In December 2022, I checked in with one of our guest experts from our workshop, Caroline Whitehouse, Forest Health Specialist/Entomologist with the Government of Alberta. The timing was great because their department had just received their aerial survey imagery mapping and are able to provide us with statements about their surveillance of the spruce budworm activity. Both Caroline Whitehouse and Louis Price, Forestry Health Officer with the Calgary Forest Area of the Government of Alberta, have assisted us in our workshop and ongoing consultation about the status of the situation. We thank them for sharing the following comments and custom close-up MAP of our area:
- Aerial overview surveys results indicate that spruce budworm populations generally declined across the province in 2022.
- In the southern region of the province, the number of hectares of spruce budworm damage mapped decreased by 57 per cent compared to 2021.
- The only aerially-detectible infestations were located in Mountain View County, adjacent to the northeast corner of the M.D. of Bighorn. The 2021 infestation that spanned Foothills and Rocky View Counties has largely collapsed based on the aerial survey.
- Small, residual pockets of defoliated spruce will likely still be seen from the ground in the coming years. This can be expected since spruce budworm is a natural part of the ecosystem in this part of the province and is always present at some level.
To confirm the good news, we see evidence of a decline in spruce budworm populations in our area! Note that on the 2022.12.13 MAP, there are no indications in the Foothills County area for aerially detectible infestation. We are hoping that trend continues in 2023.
For Other News & Updates:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CouncillorSuzanneOel/
Email: Suzanne.Oel@FoothillsCountyAB.ca
With best regards,
Suzanne
