The fungus will not survive on dead wood, and neither can a pine infect another pine with white pine blister rust, so you can dispose of the tree in any legal manner. The infection stage of White Pine Blister Rust comes from several species within the genus Ribes (currant, gooseberries), it's alternate host. The pycnial spores on the pine become aecial spores in spring and can travel 400 to 800 miles to infect Ribes. The fungus then goes through several reproductive stages on the Ribes and ultimately basidiospores are released from the Ribes and wind dispersed to infect susceptible white pine July thru October. The basidiospores infect pine through the stomata on the needles. Oregon State University recommends the minimum distance between white pine and ribes be 100' but preferably 1/2 mile. For more information on White Pine Blister Rust consult the following publications: http://ext.nrs.wsu.edu/forestryext/foresthealth/notes/whitepinerust.htm http://www.forestpathology.org/dis_wpbr.html http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/3205.html http://www.extension.umn.edu/projects/yardandgarden/ygbriefs/P442whtpineblstrst.html

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