Pine Beetles Are Coming

The Pine Beetles are coming.

At a presentation to City Council Monday morning, City Parks Supervisor John Penrice, gave some suggestions about what the city can do now to become ready for a future outbreak of the Western and Mountain Pine Beetles.

"Parts of Kamloops and Kelowna are infected. By our estimates, it will hit the South Okanagan by 2008. We can't stop it from coming, but there are things we can do now to be prepared for it," says Penrice.

He says monitoring pine trees is a good start.

"The best thing to do is keep an eye on our pine trees and educate the public about what to look for in their own backyards," says Penrice.

He says people should look for small shot holes oozing a yellowish gunk in the first 20 feet of a tree's trunk.

Penrice says there are thousands of pine trees in Penticton.

"We are planning a surveying program so we can know exactly where these trees are," says Penrice.

He says they are also working on setting up a Pine Beetle Hotline people can call to get information about the bugs and ways to protect their trees.