The Rockport Conservation Commission (RCC) will host a presentation at the Rockport Public Library on Wednesday, Oct. 7, at 6 p.m., to review the latest information about the presence of the emerald ash borer in the area.

 

RCC member Georgia Urso will discuss the recent Geographic Information System (GIS) survey that looked at Rockport municipal ash trees, recognizing specimen ash trees that are of high priority to preserve.

 

The program will also cover: identifying ash trees and the importance of ashes in communities; what the emerald ash borer (EAB) is, how it got here, impacts on infested areas, and where it has spread to in Maine so far. Urso will also explain solutions and how the public can get involved, as well as answer audience questions.

 

Georgia Urso recently graduated from the University of Maine with a B.A. in Botany and a minor in Legal Studies. She worked as an AmeriCorps crew member from 2016-17 in Flagstaff, Arizona, where she participated in multiple ecological restoration and invasive species removal projects. She also completed an internship at Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 2024, which focused on their eastern hemlock preservation project.