LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — City and state officials have tied green ribbons around more than 200 ash trees to provide a visual example of how Lincoln could be affected by the emerald ash borer.

Students from McPhee Elementary School helped band the trees last week as part of an Arbor Day project. Lynn Johnson, director of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, says the banded trees are in high-traffic areas, including the University of Nebraska-Lincoln East Campus.

The ribbons are meant to help residents recognize ash trees. They also represent a tree that eventually could die because of damage done by the invasive insect.

The emerald ash borer, which could be headed to the area and likely already is in Nebraska, has destroyed thousands of trees in the eastern U.S.