Two Noordhoek organisations are stepping up efforts to save the leafy suburb’s trees from an invasive beetle that is spreading across the city.
The polyphagous shot hole borer beetle, initially found in Somerset West, spread to Newlands on Tuesday January 24, infecting a boxelder tree.
Since then, it has reached Rondebosch, Wynberg, Mowbray, Claremont, and Kenilworth, but, so far, no cases have been confirmed in the far south, according to mayoral committee member for spatial planning and environment Eddie Andrews. And the Noordhoek Ratepayers’ Association (NRPA) and the Noordhoek Environment Action Group (Neag) are working to keep it that way.
“The trees in the valley and the wider far south are at serious risk of infection by the beetle,“ said Rob Anderson, of Neag. ”Experiences in other areas of Cape Town and the country have told us that especially our oak, plane, maple, poplar, coral, and willow trees are at risk. That’s 50 percent of the trees in Noordhoek.“
Some of those trees might not be indigenous, but they still played an important role for residents and animal life, he said, adding that a concerted effort was needed to keep the beetle at bay for as long as possible and limit its effect if it did reach Noordhoek.
The NRPA and Neag are assembling a group of experts to identify tree species that are resilient to the beetle.
“We are reaching out to civic and environmental groups in the Far South Peninsula Community Forum so that we can work together. To bolster our efforts, we have been in contact with the City of Cape Town’s invasive species unit and recreation and parks department as well,“ said Mr Anderson.
They have also distributed flyers that highlight the risks associated with firewood.
In a Facebook post, the NRPA said firewood harbouring beetles was a major reason for their rapid spread in the southern suburbs and experts were urging the public to only buy gum and pine for their firewood and to only use charcoal (or gas) for braais to reduce the risk of beetle infestations.
Gum and pine wood are recommended because they are believed to be more resistant to the beetle infestations compared to other types of wood.
However, asked about the certainty of this claim, Mr Andrews said, “We cannot confirm this at this stage.“ He said the beetle had so far not been detected in gum and pine trees.
Mr Andrews urged the public to be on the lookout for signs of infested trees such as branch die-back, discoloured leaves, dry and leafless branches, cracks with galleries filled with black fungus, gumming from beetle holes, small entry and exit holes on the bark, and staining.
Suspected infestations can be reported to 021 4444 2357, invasive.species@captown.gov.za or capetown.gov.za/invasivespecies.