Effort to counter hemlock pest is multistate job

The effort to protect hemlock trees from an invasive pest has forestry officials and nature groups working across state lines.
The hemlock wooly adelgid has laid waste to Eastern hemlock stands from the Northeast into the southern Appalachians.
The group Save Georgia’s Hemlocks is helping local agencies in southeastern Tennessee combat the invasive species of insect.
The group is sharing expertise with Tennessee groups, saying homeowners can protect trees on their land.
The tiny nonnative insects were recently found on Walden’s Ridge and biologists say they will spread across the Cumberland Plateau in the coming decade. The pest has destroyed thousands of hemlocks in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and has been found in the Cherokee National Forest.