The mountain pine beetle has hit the Central Black Hills hard. And Mount Rushmore is in the middle of the epidemic.
Bruce Weisman with the National Park Service says the monument is holding its own against the beetle attack. The Park Service took broad proactive measures to curb the impact--including a large thinning operation and aggressive cutting of infected trees.
Weisman says hundreds of trees have been lost, but he notes others are being saved. The attempt to save some of the trees at Rushmore includes spraying insecticide on select old pine trees that are in public areas. He says one giant pine tree at Mount Rushmore dates back to 1775.
Weisman says the old trees are an important part of the visitor experience.
“I do want people to be able to get out and touch an object or a living organism and put it into context of history. I would like people to stop and touch a tree that was a seedling before our country became a country,” says Weisman.
Weisman says there is a limit on how many trees can be saved. He says too much pesticide could hurt the environment. He says natural processes will have to run their course across much of the park–this means many trees will be lost and people will have to adapt to the changing landscape
