Silver Lining: Subzero Temps Could Kill Off Emerald Ash Borer

One man’s cold could turn into another’s victory lap.

That’s the silver lining story associated with the extreme cold weather that moved through much of the Midwest recently and forced folks in Joliet to stay indoors for extended periods of time, according to a Fox 9 News report out of Minnesapolis-St. Paul.

What’s the local connection? And who’s going to be celebrating?

Robert Venette, a research biologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture whose research lab is on the University of Minnesota’s St. Paul campus, says in the Fox 9 News report that subzero temperatures could be Mother Nature’s way of lending a hand in rubbing out an ecological invader—the emerald ash borer.

Venette says at minus-20 degrees Fahrenheit, half of the insects larvae will 

And that means the expense of treating and/or cutting down infected Ash trees in cities and villages across the Midwest soon could go away, too. Call it hot savings.