Louisiana Politicians Are Working to Deal With the Silent Danger of Thousands of Dead and Infested Trees
BATON ROUGE, La. — Residents of Louisiana are very worried about their safety because of the dead pine trees that were damaged by last summer’s drought and hungry beetles. Officials say that weak tree limbs could fall on homes, roads, power lines, and businesses without notice.
More people are asking state and local officials for help removing trees from their yards and for advice on how to do it. On Tuesday, lawmakers on Louisiana’s House Emergency Beetle Subcommittee met for the first time to try to find answers. Officials say that something needs to be done before there is widespread damage. They are directing people to charitable groups and asking the governor to help them get government aid.
Republican state Rep. Michael Johnson said, “You could be living your normal life and all of a sudden there’s a tree over your bedroom, the kids’ room, your car, or it hits a power line and starts a fire.” “In a way, it’s a silent threat that will come true in the end.”
Even though Louisiana is usually one of the biggest states in the country, it had a terrible drought last year. Tiny bark bugs, like the Ips Engraver, ate pine trees in the Bayou State while millions of trees were struggling to stay alive. Because of the weather and the bugs, more trees died in central Louisiana than some experts say they have ever seen before.
A forest scientist in Louisiana named Jim Meeker said that he has “never seen anything like this” when it comes to trees dying in the area.
He said, “This is a really dangerous tree emergency.” “There are tens of thousands of dead pine trees standing there that are dangerous to people’s health, property, travel routes, and right of way.”
Louisiana is always worried about falling tree limbs because the state is prone to tornadoes, severe weather, and storms. But there are so many trees that are very weak or dead that experts say outside forces like strong winds might not even be needed to bring them down.
“We have enough trouble when storms hit; it’s even worse when trees fall without warning,” said Taylor Barras, who is in charge of the Louisiana Division of Administration.
Johnson said that he knows of at least two cases this year where people were killed when trees fell because they were weak. In one case, a tree fell on a Pineville woman’s camper during a storm. In St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, a man was standing in a parking lot when a tree fell on him.
Legislators and people who work for the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry say they get a lot of calls every day from people who are worried about dying trees in their yards and want to know how to get rid of the pines. Taking down a tree can cost more than $1,000, and it can cost more than $3,000 to take down a big tree close to the house.
Residents have to pay a lot of money to deal with the problem, especially in a state with the second-highest poverty rate in the country, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Johnson said he just got a letter from an 87-year-old woman who needed help because she was told it would cost $6,000 to cut down four trees.
Jones said, “She doesn’t have any money, but those trees could fall on her house.” “She’s really scared.”
Also, officials say that if a dead tree isn’t taken down and then falls on a neighbor’s land, the homeowner would likely be held responsible because many insurance policies don’t cover damage like that.
On Tuesday, lawmakers talked about making a list of volunteer groups that could help people cut down trees. They also talked about the possibility of giving homes emergency funds to help them out.
Aside from Louisiana, they also looked for answers in other places, like congressional bills that could help with federal resources. It’s possible for Gov. Jeff Landry to declare a state of emergency, which would let state resources be used. Landry could do even more by asking President Joe Biden for help and money from the federal government.
An email to Landry’s office asking for a response about the governor’s possible plans did not get a response.