Apply to have your ash tree removed by the city of Wausau

If you have an ash tree in your yard, the city of Wausau could help you remove it. 

A nearly 500,000 dollar grant from the state Department of Natural Resources is aimed at helping residents in disadvantaged community areas to have ash trees removed.

City forester John Kahon spoke at a meeting of the city Parks and Recreation committee on Monday. 

“This year I believe there’s 146 trees our contractor took down. So that was very helpful,” Kahon said.

Ash trees are native to Wisconsin and common in local yards and woodlands, and they attract a dangerous invasive species.

The emerald ash borer is an insect that tunnels under the bark of ash trees, feeding on the tree’s vascular tissues and causing death from the top down.

Having the trees removed prevents the spread of the emerald ash borer to other ash trees. 

The grant money, which expires in September of 2027, is also aimed at replacing the trees that are taken down.

“We did plant 970 trees this year, which is obviously a lot more than we normally do,” Kahon said. “The most we’ve done in the past is about 530. A big chunk of that was 415 through the grant.”

The grant program has $100,000 allocated to help Wausau residents remove ash trees from their property.

Kahon says they’ve only spent around half of that. 

“It’s been extremely extremely difficult to get people to apply. I’m not exactly sure why,” Kahon said. “They think there’s a catch, there’s something to it.”

There’s over $60,000 of that money left. It can pay for the removal of a tree on your property.  To find out if you qualify, visit the Marathon County Urban Forestry webpage.

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