Well into its second year of a multi-year attack plan, the state's Japanese beetle eradication program in Orem appears to have the tenacious bugs in full retreat.

"We've seen a 95 percent decrease in population in relation to last years numbers," he said. "If we got a report card it would be [an A] which is pretty good since this is not an easy thing to get rid of."

Specifically, a year ago 2,152 Japanese beetles were caught in traps throughout the Orem treatment area. To date this year, only 100 beetles have been trapped in a scaled back treatment area. The smaller treatment zone is roughly within the boundaries of 700 North, Orem Boulevard, Center Street, 900 West and small section within 800 North, 890 West, 570 North and 1200 West.

And that is after state officials increased the number of traps in the treatment area this year by 40 percent for a total of 1,200 traps, Burfitt said.

Beginning in late June, Trugreen ChemLawn crews sprayed a series of foliar pesticide treatments over a 470-acre treatment zone. They also added two more turf spraying over the 100 acres near the Orem Community Hospital and two schools located within the infestation's epicenter.

A single adult male Japanese beetle was trapped outside of the Orem treatment zone this summer near Utah Valley University, but Burfitt said so-called stray males don't present a threat for the beetle population to migrate out of the treatment area.

The Utah program initiated in May of 2007 is based off of successful Japanese beetle eradication efforts in Las Vegas, San Diego, and three areas in Oregon.

The critical time to lay down the foliar and turf insecticides was in the week or two in early July when the adult beetles emerge and lay eggs that hatch larvae that live on top of the first two inches of soil.

"They're very sensitive to insecticides," Burfitt said. "It's the first month that we have to get them."

Richard Manning, Orem's assistant city manager whose assignments include the Japanese beetle eradication program, said though he didn't put specific expectations on where the city would stand in the beetle battle two years into the program, eradication efforts are surpassing his expectations.

"I expected numbers more in terms of last year's numbers, so this is real surprise," he said.

Burfitt credits a large portion of the program's success to Orem residents' cooperation and spirit of coming together as a community.

"If we don't get 99 to 100 percent [participation] it leaves a safe haven," he said.

Next year's treatment zone boundaries will likely be the same as this year's perimeters, Burfitt said, with a fourth and possibly fifth year to mop up beetle populations on as little as a handful of properties.

Manning reminds residents within the treatment area to continue bagging green waste into the fall to avert further contamination.