Gwonseon-gu Completes Pine Wilt Disease Control Project by End of Month

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Seo Dong-young] Gwonseon-gu announced on the 17th that it is conducting pine wilt disease control projects targeting approximately 12,000 pine trees in greenbelts and parks, including Chilbo Mountain and Gogeum Mountain within the district.

The district plans to complete the control project (preventive inoculation) by the 28th of this month, before the activity of pine wilt disease vectors becomes active.

Pine wilt nematodes are parasitic roundworms that feed on pine, Korean pine nut, and beach pine trees. They parasitize vector insects such as Japanese pine sawyer beetles and Asian pine sawyer beetles. When vector insects feed on young tree branches, the nematodes penetrate into tree tissues, multiply rapidly, block the pathways of water and nutrient transport, and ultimately kill the trees.

Infected trees show drooping leaves that turn reddish in color throughout. Because there is no cure, it is known as "pine AIDS," a condition from which recovery is impossible, making continuous surveillance and preventive control measures extremely important.

Gil Young-bae, head of Gwonseon-gu Office, urged, "We will foster and preserve healthy pine trees through prevention and control of pine wilt disease in roadside greenery and forests within the district. We ask citizens to report any dead pine trees immediately to the Gwonseon-gu Office's Greenbelt and Parks Division."