Budworm spraying to begin in Kamloops timber area

NEWS — More than 23,000 hectares of forest in the Kamloops timber supply area will be treated for western spruce budworm.

The B.C. Ministry of Forests said today the biological agent Foray 48B will be applied by helicopter between Wednesday, June 18 and July 5, weather permitting, on about 16 sites near Menanteau Lake, Logan Lake, Tunkwa Lake, Pinantan Lake, Paul Lake, Heffley Lake, Sullivan Lake and Isobel Lake.

The western spruce budworm is an insect native to B.C. and the Pacific Northwest, said the ministry. In its larval stage, it defoliates Douglas fir, true firs, spruce and larch trees. A budworm outbreak has the potential to seriously harm or kill trees over large areas.

The pest management plan and maps of the treatment areas can be viewed at the Thompson Okanagan Region Forest Health Program office at 441 Columbia Street, Kamloops or online at: http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/rsi/ForestHealth/Western_Spruce_Budworm_Spray_2014.htm.

The active ingredient in Foray 48B is the naturally occurring bacterium that affects only moth and butterfly larvae and can be used safely around humans and other animals, the ministry said. “Birds, household pets, fish and beneficial insects (including honey bees) are not affected.”