(A) Forester duties. The powers and duties of the City Forester as set forth in this code are hereby conferred upon the Park Superintendent. It is the duty of the Forester to coordinate, under the direction and control of the City Council, all activities of the municipality relating to the control and prevention of shade tree disease. The City Forester shall recommend to the Council the details of a program for the control of shade tree disease and perform the duties incident to such a program adopted by the Council.
(B) Program. It is the intention of the City Council to conduct a program of plant pest control pursuant to the authority granted by M.S. § 18G13, as it may be amended from time to time. This program is directed specifically at the control and elimination of Dutch elm disease fungus, elm bark beetles, oak wilt, emerald ash borer and other tree diseases; and is undertaken at the recommendation of the Commissioner of Agriculture and the Council in the conduct of this program.
(C) Nuisance declared. The prevention, control, and abatement of Dutch elm disease, oak wilt disease, emerald ash borer, and other tree diseases is necessary for the protection, preservation, and conservation of public and private lands and the investment and benefit therein, and to protect and promote the general welfare of the public and this community. Therefore, the following conditions are hereby found and declared to be a public nuisance wherever they exist in the city:
(1) Any living or dead elm tree or part thereof infected to any degree with the Dutch elm disease fungus Certatocystits ulmi (Buisman) Moreau or which harbors any of the elm bark beetles Scolytus multistriatus (Eichhh) or Hylugropinus rufipes (Marsh);
(2) Any dead elm tree or part thereof, including logs, branches, stumps, firewood, or other elm material from which the bark has not been removed or burned;
(3) Any living or dead oak tree or part thereof infected to any degree with the oak wilt fungus (Ceratocytis fagacearum); and/or
(4) Any living or dead fraxinus spp tree or part thereof infected to any degree with the insect emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennix) or any other tree species infected with a disease.
(D) Prohibition. It is unlawful for any person to permit any public nuisance as defined in divisions (C)(1) through (C)(4) above to remain on any premises owned or controlled by such person within the city. The nuisances may be abated in the manner prescribed by this subchapter.
(E) Inspection and investigation.
(1) The Forester shall inspect all premises and places within the city as often as practicable to determine whether any condition declared in division (C) above to be a public nuisance exists thereon.
(2) All reported incidents of infestation of Dutch elm fungus, the presence of elm bark beetles, of infection by the oak wilt fungus or the presence of emerald ash borer, or other tree infestations shall be promptly investigated.
(F) Entry on private premises. The Forester or his or her duly authorized agents may enter upon private premises at any reasonable time for the purpose of carrying out any of the duties assigned him or her under this subchapter, in accordance with § 10.20.
(G) Diagnosis. The Forester shall, upon finding conditions indicating Dutch elm disease or other infestation, immediately send appropriate specimens or samples to the Commissioner of Agriculture for analysis or take other steps for diagnosis as may be recommended by the Commissioner. Except as provided in division (J) below, no action to remove infected trees or wood shall be taken until positive diagnosis of the disease has been made.
(H) Abatement generally. No action to remove, destroy and dispose, or require the removal, destruction, and disposal of elm trees, wood infected with Dutch elm fungus, oak trees infected by oak wilt fungus or fraxinus spp (ash) trees or fraxinus spp (ash) wood harboring emerald ash borer shall be taken until a reasonably certain diagnosis of the disease has been made. When such reasonably certain diagnosis has been made, the infected tree or wood shall be removed, destroyed, and disposed of in a manner which will effectively destroy and prevent as fully as possible the spread of the Dutch elm or oak wilt disease fungus, or the spread of emerald ash borer populations or other tree diseases will be handled by the recommendations of the Commissioner of Agriculture.
(1) Presence of elm bark beetles or emerald ash borer. When the presence of elm bark beetles has been discovered in or upon any living elm tree but the presence of Dutch elm disease fungus is not then or thereafter diagnosed, the tree shall be treated in a manner which will effectively destroy and prevent as full as possible the spread of the elm bark beetle. When the presence of emerald ash borer has been discovered in or upon a living fraxinus (ash) tree, the tree shall be treated in a manner which will effectively destroy and prevent as full as possible the spread of the emerald ash borer. If the treatment is not or, because of the extent of infestation, cannot be effective, the tree shall be removed, destroyed, and disposed of.
(2) Dead elm or fraxinus (ash) trees, logs, stumps, and the like. Standing dead elm trees, elm logs, branches, stumps, firewood, or other raw material from which the bark has not been removed and which are not infected with Dutch elm disease fungus, shall have the bark removed, destroyed, and disposed of or shall be treated in a manner which will effectively destroy and prevent as fully as possible the spread of the elm bark beetle, emerald ash borer or other diagnosed tree diseases. If the treatment is not effective, or, because of the extent of infestation, cannot be effective, the trees, logs, branches, stumps, firewood, or other raw elm material shall be removed, destroyed, and disposed of.
(3) Specifications and procedures. The City Forester shall establish specifications and procedures for the removal, destruction, and disposal of trees and wood infected with Dutch elm disease fungus, oak wilt fungus, or emerald ash borer for treating live elm or fraxinus (ash) tree infested with elm bark beetles or emerald ash borers, and for removing, destroying, and disposing of elm or fraxinus (ash) trees, logs, branches, stumps, firewood, and other raw elm material. The specifications and procedures shall be consistent with current specifications and procedures designated or approved by the Commissioner of Agriculture.
(I) Abatement on private or government property.
(1) Whenever a nuisance as defined in division (C) above is found to exist on private property outside any public way in the city, or upon property owned and controlled by a governmental unit other than the city, the owner or person in control of the property shall be notified in writing by mail or by personal delivery that the condition exists. Once the letter is received by the property owner, it is their responsibility to contact the Public Works Department and arrange actions for removal. The notice states that if the nuisance is not abated by the owner or person in control of the property within 20 days after receipt of the notice, in the manner prescribed by the City Forester, the city by and through its City Council may enter upon the premises and abate the nuisance.
(2) If the owner or person in control of any private premises upon which a nuisance exists does not abate or eliminate the same within 30 days after receipt of notification, the City Council, its officers, employees, and agents shall proceed to have the nuisance properly abated or eliminated.
(J) Abatement on city property. Nuisances as defined in division (C) above which exist upon property owned or controlled by the city, including public street rights-of-way, shall be abated or eliminated by the City Council forthwith in accordance with established specifications and procedures.
(K) Cost of abatement. If, pursuant to division (I) above, the City Council orders the removal or abatement of a nuisance, the City Forester shall report the cost of the removal or abatement to the Council and the expense thereof plus an amount determined by the Council to reimburse the city for its cost of inspection and eradication shall be assessed by the Council upon the lot or lots on which the nuisance was located, notice being first given by publication in the official paper of the time and place that the assessment shall be made. The assessment procedure shall be as prescribed by M.S. § 429.101, as it may be amended from time to time, and the assessment shall be a lien on the lot or lots, and shall be returned and collected in the same manner as other city taxes.
(L) Procedures for removal of infected trees and wood.
(1) Whenever the Forester finds with reasonable certainty that infestation defined in division (C) above exists in any tree or wood in any public or private place in the city, he or she shall proceed as follows:
(a) If the Forester finds that the danger of infestation of other elm trees is not imminent because of elm dormancy, he or she shall make a written report of his or her findings to the City Council which shall proceed by:
1. Abating the nuisance as a public improvement under M.S. Ch. 429, as it may be amended from time to time; or
2. Abating the nuisance as provided in division (L)(2) below.
(b) If the Forester finds that danger of infestation of other elm trees is imminent, the Forester shall notify the property owner by mail and/or by leaving notice at the property and that the nuisance will be abated within a specified time, not less than five days from the date of mailing of the notice. The Forester shall immediately report the action to the City Council; and after the expiration of the time limited by the notice, the Forester may abate the nuisance.
(2) Upon receipt of the Forester’s report required by division (L)(1)(a), the City Council shall by resolution order the nuisance abated. Before action is taken on a resolution, the Council shall publish notice of its intention to meet to consider taking action to abate the nuisance. This notice shall be mailed to affected property owners and published once not less than one week prior to the meeting. The notice shall state the time and place of the meeting, the streets affected, action proposed, the estimated cost of the abatement, and the proposed basis of assessment, if any, of costs. At the hearing or adjournment thereof, the Council shall hear property owners with reference to the scope and desirability of the proposed project. The Council shall thereafter adopt a resolution confirming the original resolution with the modifications as it considers desirable and provide for the doing of the work by day labor or by contract.
(3) The Forester shall keep a record of the costs of abatements done under this section and shall report monthly to the City Clerk all work done for which assessments are to be made stating and certifying the description of the land, lots, and parcels involved and the amount chargeable to each.
(4) On or before September 1 of each year, the City Clerk shall list the total unpaid charges for each abatement against each separate lot or parcel to which they are attributable under this subchapter. The City Council may then spread the charges or any portion thereof against the property involved as a special assessment under M.S. § 429.101, as it may be amended from time to time, and other pertinent statutes for certification to the County Auditor and collection the following year along with current taxes.
(5) The City Council has determined that the health of the trees within the municipal limits is threatened by a fatal disease known as Dutch elm disease, oak wilt, or emerald ash borer, or other fatal tree disease. It has further determined that the loss of these trees growing upon public and private property would substantially depreciate the value of property within the city and impair the safety, good order, general welfare, and convenience of the public. It is declared to be the intention of the Council to control and prevent the spread of this disease, and this subchapter is being enacted for that purpose. It is declared to be the intention of the Council to establish a policy for sharing in the cost of replacement tree(s) in the amount of up to $50 per property.
(M) Spraying elm trees. Whenever the Forester determines that any elm tree or elm wood within the city is infected with Dutch elm fungus, the Forester may treat all nearby high value elm trees with an effective elm bark beetle destroying concentrate. Treating activities authorized by this section shall be conducted in accordance with technical and expert opinions and plans of the Commissioner of Agriculture and under the supervision of the Commissioner and his or her agents whenever possible.
(N) Transporting elm wood prohibited. It is unlawful for any person to transport within the city any bark-bearing elm wood without having obtained a permit from the Forester. The Forester shall grant permits only when the purposes of the subchapter will be served thereby.
(O) Interference prohibited. No person shall prevent, delay, or interfere with the Forester or the Foresters agents while they are engaged in the performance of duties imposed by this subchapter.
(Prior Code, § 8-3-6) (Ord. 492, passed 1-26-2009; Ord. 495, passed 1-26-2009; Ord. 661, passed 2-13-2017; Ord. 611, passed 2-13-2017) Penalty, see § 92.99