Over 200 trees have been cleared so far at Southampton’s Fairy Lake, due to an Emerald Ash Borer infestation, with many trees along the shoreline still marked for clearing.

Hub Staff

As of February 14, over 200 have been cleared by the contract team workers from Ontario Line Clearing and Tree Experts, at the Fairy Lake tree removal site. “The project’s going very well,” said Donna Lacey, Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority Forestry Technician during a pre-arranged tour of Fairy Lake. An estimated 500 trees that have been infected by the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) will be removed from the beloved Southampton scenic area.

Lacey said that the team from Ontario Line Clearing are making great progress, despite less snow cover than would be typical for this time of year. She estimated the clearing project will wrap up by the end of March or earlier. “We’re looking at little bit more bare soil and ice conditions, where we should have had a nice heavy snow pack to protect the trail and the surrounding grounds.”

Lacey said that sand has been put down to avoid the sliding of skid steers as much as possible. “Bumper logs” have been placed beside intact trees that won’t be removed, to protect the roots. And the workers are avoiding the wet areas as much as possible.

A lot of the trees that have been removed will be reused by local landowners for firewood, milling wood and some lumber has been saved for town projects. Lacey said the reusing of the infected EAB trees is permitted as long as the wood doesn't go out of Saugeen Shores as the area is already heavily infested and keeping the wood in Saugeen Shores would not make a harmful change in the ecosystem.

Ontario Line Clearing crew leader, Lane Kuehl, is a Sauble Beach native and said the team is making a lot of progress and the crew has had no issues yet. “The territory is tough. It’s all slope and with the machinery you have to be careful on the hills,” said Kuehl, who insisted they’re trying to save as many trees as they can and do the least damage as possible.

See: Fairy Lake tree removal devastating but necessary

Both Donna Lacey and the crew remarked how few people have come by the site, which is surrounded by warning signs, with the exception of an instance of a person wanting photographs.

Kuehl wanted to stress the dangers that exist at the job site. “We’ve got guys climbing the trees all the time and there’s a lot of brush coming down every which way,” Kuehl said, adding that because crew members know what’s going, it’s only safe for them to be on the site unaccompanied. “It’s a pretty dangerous spot to be.”

Some larger trees surrounding the shoreline have been marked to be made into benches, the clear sign of an EAB infested tree being the loss of bark on the tree. Lacey explained that although she’s only seen one Woodpecker on her spot-checks, the bird likes to feast on the EAB larvae which feed on the inner bark of ash trees, disrupting the tree's ability to transport water and nutrients. The result makes the infected tree have spots of missing bark, which can also show EAB exit holes.

Residents wishing to acquire wood from Fairy Lake can contact info@ontariolineclearing.com.

Woodpeckers strip the bark off Ash trees when they eat the EAB larvae. The Town of Saugeen Shores have marked these trees for a potential spot for a future repurposed bench.

Contracted workers from Ontario Line Clearing and Tree Experts have put sand down to protect the trails, as there has been a lack of snow cover.

Approximately 500 infected Ash trees will be removed surrounding Fairy Lake.

The skilled workers want to stress that the Fairy Lake site is off limits while the dangerous work from above and below takes place.

An Emerald Ash Borer infected tree with an exit hole.

The loss of bark, a clear sign of an EAB infection.