Quarantine for firewood

Officials hope to slow tree-killing insect migration

By FRITZ MAYER

NEW YORK STATE — If you’re taking a camping vacation in New York State, officials want you to leave your firewood at home.

To further make the point, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) instituted emergency rules on June 3, that ban bringing firewood into the state from any other state, and moving firewood more than 50 miles within the state.

The ban is an effort to stop the spread of tree-killing pests, such as the Emerald Ash Borer, Asian Longhorned Beetle and Sirex Wood Wasp.

The Emerald Ash Borer was discovered in Michigan five years ago, and has since destroyed an estimated 20 million trees. The insect has been found in Western Pennsylvania.

The Asian Longhorned Beetle appeared in New York City in 1996. It infests many species of hardwood trees with larvae that bore into the wood and feed on it until they become adult beetles. The beetles have been seen in the city and in Nassau County.

The Sirex Wood Wasp kills pine trees when the female lays her eggs in the trees, and injects a toxic mucus beneath the bark. The Sirex was first discovered in New York in 2004, and has since been seen in several counties, although not in Sullivan County.

DEC commissioner Pete Grannis said, “These invasive pests and diseases have a damaging effect, not only on the environment but also on the economy. One of the easiest ways for these pests to spread is by the unintentional transportation of infested firewood. These regulations will combat that by reducing the accidental chauffeuring of these threats.”

The move has the support of campground owners. “We have been working with the DEC to help spread the word about the potential dangers we are facing involving invasive pests in our trees. It is important that we act now as a preventative measure rather than wait and have to react once the threat is upon us,” said Scott Sherwood, president of the Campground Owners of New York.

These new measures, which can be seen at www.dec.ny.gov/regulations/2359.html, are emergency regulations, which are effective for 90 days. Meanwhile, the DEC will submit a formal rulemaking proposal to the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform (GORR) for review. GORR’s approval would initiate a public-involvement process leading to a permanent firewood regulation. Firewood that has been treated to kill insects is not affected by the emergency rules.

In Pennsylvania, there is a quarantine of firewood on three Western counties where the Emerald Ash Borer was discovered.

While there are no regulations prohibiting the transfer of firewood in the rest of the state, Chris Novak, the press secretary of the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, said, “We do discourage it.”