Ed. Note: The following is a news release courtesy of the Los Angeles County Fire Department. 

An invasive beetle that has killed thousands of oak trees across California has been found in Green Valley, with potential to spread to Santa Clarita.

The Goldspotted Oak Borer, known as the GSOB, an invasive beetle that has killed thousands of oak trees in San Diego, Riverside, and Orange counties since 2004, has now been detected in Los Angeles County.

The GSOB was discovered in northern Los Angeles County in the unincorporated community of Green Valley.

Because GSOB is transported in oak firewood, it is critical that Californians keep firewood local and not move it out of the area where it was cut.

This new detection of GSOB represents the third long-distance movement of the beetle from its known areas of infestation in San Diego, Riverside, and Orange Counties. It is believed to have made the jump from the current zone of infestation to Los Angeles County through the movement of infested firewood. Any community that has coast live oaks, the most prevalent oak species in Los Angeles County, is vulnerable to a GSOB infestation. Some of the communities that could be impacted include Altadena, Pasadena, Santa Clarita, and Malibu.

The Fire Department, the Department of Agricultural Commissioner/Weights and Measures, and other County Departments are collaborating with University of California Cooperative Extension, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), and the US Forest Service to develop a response plan for GSOB in Los Angeles County. These infestations can be very costly to control and they have the potential to devastate our oak woodlands, our communities, and individual properties.

The County of Los Angeles and CAL FIRE will continue to coordinate with other agencies, adjacent counties, and other groups monitoring the GSOB in California until the infestation has been mitigated.