Aug 7, 2006 11:27 pm US/Mountain
Frisco Deals With Pine Beetle Epidemic
FRISCO, Colo. (AP) ―
The pine beetle epidemic around this town has gotten so bad that some areas might have to be clear cut.
"Unfortunately, were getting in the game kind of late. I think were going to see mortality rates of 90 to 95 percent," assistant public works director Rick Higgins said.
Some 6,000 trees were cleared from a 40 acre parcel this summer, leaving the area with only clumps of smaller lodgepole pines and stands of aspen.
"It really exploded on us. It looks like a bomb went off here," Higgins said in describing the area.
The town spent about $63,000 removing the beetle-infested dead and dying trees this summer and has set aside $100,000 for work on 120 acres next year, though officials say that amount won't be enough to finish the job.
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