OISC Summer Summit

Understanding the Threat of Invasive Insect Pests

This multi-day event aims to bring together members of the invasive insect pest management community to engage with, educate, and inform regional, state, and local government decision-makers and resource managers about efforts to protect Oregon’s commercial resources, urban tree canopies, culturally significant species, and natural areas from invasive insect pests. Each day will include examples of both the successes and challenges of tackling insect pest management facing the state. Participants will learn about the risks of no action as well as the management requirements needed to protect Oregon’s varied resources from insect pest threats. The summit seeks to highlight practical management themes such as the value of establishing transparent collaboration efforts and how slowing pest spread can be a critical step in the protection of agriculture, natural resources, and urban landscapes.

Decision-makers, elected officials, and other participants will leave with knowledge about current and future threats as well as an understanding of what can be done to improve Oregon’s capacity for dealing with the economic and ecological risks posed by invasive insects.

Events

Day One will focus on the status of the state’s Japanese beetle response and includes a ½ day information session followed by a visit to a local beetle treatment site.

Day Two, our main event, the Insect Pest Summit, will provide an overview of insect pest threats and management strategies. Six species of special interest to the greater Portland metropolitan area and the Willamette Valley will be highlighted: the spongy moth, Japanese beetle, emerald ash borer, Mediterranean oak borer, spotted lanternfly, and Japanese cedar longhorned beetle.

Day Three will begin with a field tour to visit ground zero of the emerald ash borer response in Forest Grove and will wrap up in the afternoon with the Oregon Invasive Species Council’s quarterly business meeting.

Participants can choose to attend all three days or register for individual events. Due to space limitations, pre-registration is requested.

Information Forum: 9:30 am - 12 noon 

​The largest infestation of Japanese beetles ever found in the state was detected in 2016 in Washington County (Cedar Mill, Bonny Slope, Oak Hills, and Bethany). We have a unique but limited window of opportunity to ensure the population does not become established in Oregon. Changes in Oregon’s ability to respond to this invasive beetle will have a significant effect on communities across the state and throughout the West. Neighboring states are facing a similar risk and looking to Oregon to continue to be a team player in managing this regional ecological and economic threat.

For more information on the Oregon Japanese beetle response, please click here.

Field Tour 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm Washington County Berry Farm

Japanese beetle is a threat to agricultural crops, gardens, public parks, and urban forests that are essential to Oregon’s character, economy, landscape, and way of life. Failure to manage the current population will result in a widespread destructive population that will be impossible to stop from ultimately spreading throughout the western United States.

In order to minimize the disruption to our generous hosts, registration for this field tour is limited. All participants are required to register in advance.

This all-day session will provide attendees with a comprehensive overview of insect pest threats and management strategies in Oregon, spotlighting six species of particular concern to the greater Portland metropolitan region and the Willamette Valley:

• Spongy Moth

• Japanese Beetle

• Emerald Ash Borer

• Mediterranean Oak Borer

• Spotted Lanternfly

• Japanese Cedar Longhorned Beetle

Informative species presentations will be interspersed with an interactive session for hands-on and in-depth learning about the emerald ash borer, including identification of infested trees, demonstrations of injection treatment and air curtain incineration, a walking tour to a Jackson Bottom SLAM tree, and much more.

Attendees will learn about the importance of coalition building across multiple jurisdictions for successful insect pest management, what is at risk if these efforts aren’t sustained, and the successes and challenges facing invasive pest management in Oregon. The summit will feature expert speakers leading these initiatives. Additionally, there will be presentations on topics such as how urban tree canopy management strategies can impact at-risk communities and the implications of climate change on pest threats. The day will conclude with a forum to discuss takeaways, next steps, and future strategies.

This full-day event will be particularly relevant to local decision-makers, municipalities concerned about threats to their urban tree canopies, stakeholders and coalitions that may be directly impacted by these insect pest threats, and other individuals seeking to become better informed about insect pest threats to Oregon’s natural, urban and economic resources.

Insect pests in the news: OPB 7/12/24: New pests threaten Portland’s trees. They could make future heat waves even hotter

The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is a tree-killing beetle that has been present in North America since the mid-1990s. It’s killed millions of ash trees and, in Oregon, threatens both diverse ornamental ash species that have been widely planted in urban forests and native Oregon ash that shade and cool many forested wetlands and salmon-bearing streams and are a culturally important tree species for local tribes.

On June 30, 2022, EAB was detected infesting ash saplings and trees in Forest Grove. This made Oregon the 36th US state to find EAB. Upon the discovery, a comprehensive response was mobilized to slow its spread. The “Emerald Ash Borer Readiness and Response Plan for Oregon” was activated. A coalition of organizations led by the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) and including the Tualatin Soil and Water Conservation District (TSWCD), Clean Water Services (CWS), Metro, Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF), and the US Forest Service, among others, united across multiple jurisdictions to respond to EAB.

The field tour will provide a unique opportunity for participants to gain a firsthand look at key strategies and innovative techniques being employed to slow the spread of EAB and protect vital resources.

Led by ODF, ODA, Metro, and CWS, this field tour will:

• Provide an overview of Emerald Ash Borer (EAB).

• Use native ash on site to discuss signs and symptoms of EAB infestations.

• Demonstrate the significance of both native and ornamental ash to natural areas and urban environments.

• Discuss the impacts of EAB on these environments. 

• Introduce information about ongoing EAB biocontrol efforts.

• Talk about SLAM (slow ash mortality) and other management options.

This stand-alone tour has been designed to be particularly relevant to individuals concerned about the potential impacts of this pest on their communities, those who have not yet been involved in the on-the-ground response, and anyone interested in learning more from the coalition of on-the-ground responders. Participants will have the opportunity to not just observe but also engage directly with the experts leading these initiatives.