Notice: The Town of Frye Island conducted a third island-wide browntail moth mitigation program this spring 2024 following discussion held on Wednesday 3/20 at the Excomm Meeting. Public Docs
Update 5/7/24: Spraying for Browntail Moth along public roads and public/private property concluded 4/25/24. If you opted in for assessment and your property was found to have BTM you were contacted directly by Pine State. Thank you to all who responded to the survey. Email for any questions.
The north end of the island, as mentioned in the winter assessment (seen below), is in noticeably in worse shape than last year, but evidence of nests are being found throughout the island, mostly closer to the waterfront and especially on the 'points' of the island. In most cases, the nests being found in trees are minimal or light infestation levels, especially compared to 2 years ago during the first town-wide treatment when there were areas of moderate and severe. Of note, it appears the browntail moth infestation is worsening on Raymond Cape, Windham and other areas around the lake and state as a whole.
About half of the properties assessed were found to have brown tail moth activity. Reducing browntail moth populations reduces the number of toxic hairs which may cause harm to human skin.
Thank you to the 360 property owners who took time to respond (yes or no) to the survey. We did not receive a response from ~200 properties. Of those who responded, 84% opted in for assessment.
Town Treatment: All public roads, beaches, golf course, marinas, and recreation areas were treated as necessary in 2024. Beaches 4-8 required more treatments compared with other island beaches. Overall, the infestation on the island as whole is mostly light, especially in comparison with areas on the mainland (such as Raymond Cape) which are likely causing the reintroduction of moths to the island, as well as untreated properties or areas on the island itself.
Last year, in 2023, The BOS/ExComm agreed to the spray treatment program along public roads, beaches, and the golf course for 18.3 miles. In 2022, the town paid for a total of 31.5 miles of spraying treatment including up to 50 feet of a private resident’s driveway if the homeowner consented. This year, private residents will be responsible for consent and payment of any treatment on any part of their property. In 2023, only 400-500 inches of injections on town property were anticipated due to the success of last year’s program. In 2022, 1,313 diameter inches of 92 trees on public property were treated. Injection is only done within 50 feet of the water and spraying is not permitted.
Private Property Treatment: Private resident participation in highly infested areas will help continue to reduce the population. Residents who opt in for treatment this year will be responsible for paying for their entire property, as was the case in 2023. In 2022 the town paid for the spraying from the first fifty feet of driveways. Please note, spraying is the principal method of treatment. Only afflicted trees within 50 feet of the waterfront are treated by injection.
Private Property Consent & Pricing: The town will be issuing a consent survey and forwarding this information to Pine State. This year, Pine State will be handling invoicing and payments. Pine State will assess any properties provided there is intent to undertake and pay for treatment (if needed) by consent via the survey. After the assessment, Pine State will provide the property owner with a quote for service only if there is brown tail moth activity on their property. Payment via credit card will be required before treatment is applied.
Spraying Tier Pricing:
- $350 (avg. lot / light activity)
- $500 (large lot / moderate/heavy activity)
- $750 (3/4+ acre lot)
*town paid for treatment of all trees 50+ ft up driveway in
2022. Residents are responsible for ENTIRE lot in 2024 (same as 2023)
Injection Tier Pricing (only for trees within 50 feet of waterfront)*:
$350 (1-2 trees)**
$550 (3-4 trees)**
$750 (5-6 trees)**
$950 (7+ trees)**
*per lot (injections only to be applied within 50 feet of waterfront)
ACTION REQUIRED: Property owners were sent a consent survey via email from btm [at] fryeislandtown.org (btm[at]fryeislandtown[dot]org) which allows you to:
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Sign up for an assessment to determine if treatment of any infested trees on your property is needed (with the intent to treat if so)
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Or, indicate that you will be refusing to participate in any treatment on private property.
This survey should be completed by April 5th, 2024
The goal of the program is to act as a community to treat as many infested trees as possible, to limit the impact on health and quality of life, as well as on trees island-wide. The consent survey will take only a few minutes to complete. If you did not receive the survey, please email btm [at] fryeislandtown.org (btm[at]fryeislandtown[dot]org)
Pesticide Information: The treatments will be applied by a licensed pesticide applicator (Pine State Pest Solutions), in accordance with Maine regulations regarding pesticide use. Pesticides to be used, depending on location and treatment required, are listed below.
The treatments will be applied by a licensed pesticide applicator, in accordance with Maine regulations regarding pesticide use. Pesticides to be used,depending on location and treatment required, are listed below (SDS can be found by clicking the name of the pesticide):
Potential Pesticide Usage List
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EPA Reg. #: 74578-2
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EPA Reg. #: 100-1489
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EPA Reg. #: 62719-621
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EPA Reg. #: 279
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EPA Reg. #: 432-763
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Applicator Information:
Pine State Pest Solutions, Inc.
p: 207.795.1100
a: 508 Washington St. N, Auburn, ME 04210
w: www.pinestatepest.com e: btm [at] fryeislandtown.org (btm[at]fryeislandtown[dot]org)
Contact: If you have any questions, please email btm [at] fryeislandtown.org (btm[at]fryeislandtown[dot]org).
Please check your email account, including your spam or junk mail folders for the survey message.