2023-06-26 03:00:57
Dutch elm disease wreaked havoc in Amsterdam’s parks and forests last year. A total of 770 elms had to be felled. Nevertheless, according to the municipality, the disease is ‘well manageable’.
Bart van Zoelen26 June 2023, 03:00
Amsterdam has had to cut significantly more elms because of Dutch elm disease than in previous years. The number fluctuated around 300 for years, but in 2022 it returned to the level that was usual between 1997 and 2007, when about 700 Amsterdam elms succumbed to the disease every year.
The number of 770 elms that the municipality had felled last year is about 1 percent of the estimated total of 75,000 elms in the city. The municipality expects that the number of affected trees will decrease again because Amsterdam has mainly replanted elms that are resistant to the disease in the last 25 years.
Old, susceptible elms in particular get beetle-borne elm disease. According to municipal regulations, a diseased tree must be removed within 10 days to prevent it from spreading. Because of this and because of the planting of resistant elms, the municipality calls the Dutch elm disease ‘easily manageable’.
Blown over from neighboring municipalities
Dutch elm disease spread here and there in Amsterdam, for example on the islands on the east side of the Sloterplas. Especially in Nieuw-West and Noord there were more cases of Dutch elm disease last year, probably blown over from major sources of disease just across the municipal border. Field elm, which is vulnerable to Dutch elm disease, is also more common in these districts. Long, warm summers could further explain the increase in beetles, the municipality suspects.
The Dutch elm disease is expected to strike again this year, writes alderman Melanie van der Horst (Groen) in a letter to the city council. On the other hand, the oak processionary caterpillar caused less nuisance last year and probably this year as well. The municipality explains this due to the weather conditions and the natural control of recent years.
Van der Horst also reports that the replanting program for trees that have to be felled due to lack of safety, for example because they are sick, is catching up. In 2019 it turned out that the municipality had fallen far behind with the replanting, after which it was promised to replant eight to ten thousand trees in five years. Last year, 1704 trees were felled and 2536 were planted within this programme. Such a catch-up is also expected for this year, which would be the third year in a row.
Registration not in order
The municipality still has some work to do with the trees that have to make way for new construction or infrastructure. Here too, the agreement is that where appropriate, a new tree will be planted for every felled tree. However, the registration is not yet in order, as a result of which the municipality does not know exactly which trees have been replanted. With a new registration system, this should be clear next year, so that the municipality is no longer dependent on reports for enforcement.
Also new is that from next year trees will also be replaced if they do not pose a safety risk, but are struggling with a shortage of space underground. As a result, they hardly grow and contribute little or no to the climate plans of the municipality.
In the South, West and North districts, signs with a QR code will be placed on trees for which a felling permit has been applied for. In this way, which will first be tested in a pilot, the municipality wants to inform Amsterdammers about the possibility to object.
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