Dutch Elm Disease on Confederation Boulevard

Starting on Monday, September 14, and continuing over the next three weeks, dead or dying elm trees will be removed along Confederation Boulevard, as they constitute a safety hazard for pedestrians and motorists.

Forty trees will be removed: 21 on Wellington Street and 10 on Elgin Street, in Ottawa, and 9 on Laurier Street, in Gatineau. The removed trees will be replaced, with the new trees being replanted this fall.

The removal of trees by maintenance crews may involve lane closures. The National Capital Commission (NCC) urges pedestrians and drivers to exercise caution, respect the barricades and signage, and obey the flag persons on-site.

The NCC has successfully extended the lives of many of its elm trees by more than a decade, through its comprehensive Dutch elm disease management program.

Dutch elm disease, a fungus that spreads through the roots and causes the tree to slowly decay, has been ravaging the elm population in North America since the 1930s. Since the 1970s, it has decimated the elm tree population in Canada’s Capital Region.