Planting live oaks on the coast & plains of Louisiana
From a small acorn of hope in Church Point, Louisiana, may grow a mighty oak of
coastal restoration in the wake of Hurricane Rita. Hurricane Rita destroyed many trees in the coastal plains and along the coast of Louisiana that were part of the erosion deterrent as well as a major part of the ecosystem of the coastal plains. This coastline and ecosystem needs to be restored as much as the towns and houses.

This project, simply stated, is to grow live oak seedlings from the acorns of established native trees and have them transplanted on the coastline and in the coastal plains. Locals who have time and desire are being invited to help, whether they have one square foot or an acre to plant. All that initially needs to be done is to collect acorns form local live oak trees and plant them so that they can be harvested and transplanted by a team of volunteers approximately next Thanksgiving.

Thousands of these trees will be needed, so even one tree will be important and appreciated. This project is just getting started, but Bob Thibodeaux, TCIA member and owner of Bob’s Tree Preservation Company in Church Point, has already made a commitment of 2,000 trees grown from local acorns. Thibodeau is the initiator, main point of contact and coordinator of this project.

Community groups, local government leaders and local schools are getting involved. The Southwest Center for Rural Initiatives – the St. Landry Parish satellite entity of Southern University’s Agricultural Research and Extension Center, is also getting involved. Acorns have already begun to be harvested for planting. Instruction on the harvest, selection and proper planting of the acorns is being made available.

Anyone willing and able to help out can contact Peggy at Bob’s Tree Preservation
Company, (337) 684-8733 or (337) 684-5431.

A Special Message to our Members
Doing Business in Michigan

In mid-to-late October, MIOSHA’s Consultation, Education, and Training Division (CET) formally announced a “tree trimming initiative” to members of the tree care community. The initiative responds to MIOSHA occupational fatality data showing that as of August 31, 2006, four of 19 occupational fatalities in the state were attributable to tree trimming and removal operations.

The following link will take you to the MIOSHA “Tree Trimming Initiative” Web site where you can find links to four related documents:

http://www.michigan.gov/cis/0,1607,7-154-11407_30928---,00.html#tree

TCIA’s advice to its Michigan members is to be aware of MIOSHA’s rules and guidance, but to rely first and foremost on ANSI Z133.1-2006 to establish your safety policies and procedures.

MIOSHA Part 53, the general industry standard dealing with tree trimming and removal, was promulgated in 1974 and last revised in 1983. Part 58, Vehicle Mounted Elevating and Rotating Work Platforms, was promulgated the same year and revised in 1988. To put these dates in perspective, the ANSI Z133 Standard has been revised six times since these rules went into effect and at least four times since either of them was revised.

In fact, the current tree trimming initiative references Z133.1-2000, a revision of the standard that is no longer in effect. The 2006 revision of Z133 was released in August, and TCIA subsequently mailed copies of the new standard to all its active member firms in the U.S.

With this initiative, MIOSHA’s Consultation, Education, and Training Division offers free consultation and/or training to tree care employers. You can learn more by calling the MIOSHA CET at 517-322-1809.TCIA advises that, while CET is not the enforcement arm of MIOSHA and thus cannot directly issue citations, it can obligate the employer to remedy any condition it deems deficient.

To evaluate the potential benefits or drawbacks of a consultative visit, or to forecast the outcome of a MIOSHA Compliance visit to your operations, TCIA suggests that you look for gaps between your safety policies/procedures and Z133.1-2006 as well as the relevant MIOSHA standards.

If you have specific questions about your safety policy/procedure, please call Peter Gerstenberger at TCIA: 1-603-314-5380, ext. 109. You can e-mail him at: peter@tcia.org

Emerald Ash Borer invades Maryland

The emerald ash borer (EAB) (Click for info), a serious invasive insect that feeds on and kills ash trees, has been detected in Prince George’s County. The Maryland Departments of Agriculture and Natural Resources have partnered to develop and implement an EAB eradication plan, and late last week DNR introduced an online In Focus page to help educate citizens about the pest. To help control the spread of EAB, Maryland citizens and visitors are asked to strictly comply with an established quarantine that prohibits the transport of firewood from the infested area to any other area, and to refrain from bringing firewood into Maryland from other states. To access DNR’s In Focus, click here.