Hundreds of trees have been pruned or cut down across Perth in an attempt to eradicate the 'shot-hole borer'. WA authorities say it's the biggest bio-security response in the state's history. But some experts are questioning whether cutting down trees is the answer.
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00:00It's the barest urban tree canopy in the country, and it's shrinking.
00:08Once shot hole borer invades, it will kill a tree within two years, but it will likely
00:15be cut down before then, as part of a national response to eradicate the tiny pest.
00:21If we knew that eradication was possible and that this was the only way to do it, I think
00:25people would understand.
00:27But what I'm hearing from a range of experts is that we don't actually know whether eradication
00:33is possible.
00:35So far, more than three and a half thousand trees have been removed across Perth, and
00:40the quarantine zone has expanded, restricting the movement of wood further outside the city.
00:46WA's Department of Primary Industries is leading the action on the ground, but if it wants
00:52to make changes to the response plan, it has to report to a national committee, which then
00:57advises the National Management Group, which ultimately makes the key decisions for the
01:02$44 million response.
01:05The Federal Agricultural Department says all of the evidence suggests the current eradication
01:10method, cutting trees down, is still appropriate.
01:14It says the response is complex and gathering information takes time, but it could transition
01:19to a management phase if it was decided that eradication was no longer feasible.
01:25Arborist Tom Robinson is working with local councils to find ways to manage the pest.
01:31So we're trying to determine how many of those holes are active.
01:34There's been no silver bullet and I don't think there will be, but what we're looking
01:38for is kind of that integrated pest management strategy where you've got several different
01:45options that you can use so we can manage it.
01:48He's had some promising results, saving infected trees from being cut down, which he maintains
01:54will never eradicate the shot hole borer.
01:57Removing large mature trees to eradicate the pest, which is not ultimately possible, we
02:03end up cutting down most of the trees in Perth for a goal that's unachievable.
02:08In the meantime, Perth residents wait for the ultimate remedy to save their trees.