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Perhaps it was inevitable; the area that ALB has infested is much larger than originally thought.

The discovery of new areas with Asian longhorned beetles in the greater Worcester region  (detailed in today's article in the Boston Globe) should come as a disappointment, but not a shock.

The regulated area has nearly doubled from 33 to 62 square miles since the recent discoveries, and it includes a large part of the town of Shrewsbury.

Infestations grow in two basic ways- movement of pests by the pests themselves, and movement of pests via accidental human help (like the movement of firewood). Let us all hope that the infestation in Worcester has not created other infestations through that second mechanism. There are many people in the area now designated as infested with ALB, and in the last ten years, surely some of them cut down dead trees and brought them on camping trips. I just hope that these trees were not ALB killed, because Worcester is only a few hours on the interstate away from the Applachian Trail, Adirondack State Park, Acadia National Park, Baxter State Park, the Green Mountains... and so many other gorgeous places with trees that will suffer if this pest has spread.