Ok I have Been searching FF but can't find

[SwampDonkey]

The Asian beetle that is quarantined in areas of NS is on a voluntary basis by industry. It will get here eventually because self regulation never works when it gets in the way of business.

[Ironwood]

Ron,

 Nothing on there about wood slabs.  Guess they forgot about those

 Ironwood

[ford62783]

i see what u mean but a valid point is that green log length firewood should be treated a any other green log or pulp wood if i understand it right after a few diffrent searches then i assume they r talking about dry firewood not in log length if i am mistaken please correct me but its a weird law that u can ship green logs and pulp wood but not fire wood

[motohed]

The industry should be aware if they're in a quarantined area, and what species are affected.  We freely transport veneer quality logs from PA to Canada (their trucks), NY, IN, OH, and SC.  We aren't in a quarantine area for EAB but are for gypsy moth.  There are no restrictions or inspections by government on industry.  So, the bugs are going to be transported by us if they're there.

Ron's response above is one of the issues that surfaces from state to state.  There is a federal law that is administered by USDA APHIS that prohibits the transport of materials from a quarantine area.  USDA does not enforce these regulations in a consistent manner.  I am in a gypsy moth quarantine area.  Green forest products are supposed to be inspected and certified to be pest free before leaving a quarantine area.  We ship product south and about 10 years ago we had a truck stopped as it entered North Carolina.  It did not have the appropriate documentation for gypsy moth inspection.  The truck was impounded.  To that point, there had been no enforcement of the law and in reality, no knowledge of the law.  It all changed with that impoundment.  Now, all of our loggers are trained in gypsy moth inspections.  Each load headed out of the quarantine area has an inspection certificate. 


In our global economy, we have to do something to stop the transportation of forest pests.  Dutch elm disease, chestnut blight, Sirex wood wasp, EAB, hemlock wooly adelgid, gypsy moth, fire ants.....these are just a few pests that have had devastating effects on the landscape.  We can't afford to wipe out or forests; at the rate we are going, only sweetgum will be left in another hundred years.

Wudman

I am glad to see that we all are doing are part , to help stop the spread of these and all pests that are destroying timber . I was wondering if the government was going to start spraying for the EAB , as they did in the 1970's for gypsy moth. I can't remember if they were state by state regulated or not . I guess we are all on the same page about these problems , I would like to hear from some other people in different state to see what is being done at a state level for pest control in forestry . I have gotten some very good responcses .


                  Thanks Scott

[motohed]

i see what u mean but a valid point is that green log length firewood should be treated a any other green log or pulp wood if i understand it right after a few diffrent searches then i assume they r talking about dry firewood not in log length if i am mistaken please correct me but its a weird law that u can ship green logs and pulp wood but not fire wood

HI FORD
 I have  had to be house bound for a while with a total hip replacement . So I figured , I would look into what was being done on a federal level to stop the infestation of EAB ,and other insects of late ,it seems like some of the quarentines  , pick more on firewood than logs etc . Everything else is at best in question .

[Gary_C]

I suspect one of the many reasons for not restricting log movement is because of the many problems it would cause and the uproar from the pulp wood loggers as well as the hardwood loggers. In many parts of the border between MN and WI both pulp and hardwood logs move freely back and forth. So it would not be practical to regulate that movement. Plus the Dept of Agriculture is responsible for pest control and the MN DNR somewhat controls the movement of logs.

But the bottom line reason just may be seen in the MN DNR's response to EAB being found in Houston County, MN and in the Twin City metro area. The Headlines said "well the inevitable happened." So that fatalistic response probably tells the story, they can only slow the spread of EAB down, but not stop it. Plus those two locations are where there is little to no log movement, but plenty of firewood movement.

But the restrictions on movement will surely cause some hardship for loggers once EAB is discovered in your county. I know one logger in Houston County that has a large DNR timber sale with a lot of Ash and low grade trees that he bought before the discovery. Now he cannot move that wood out of the county or across the river where much of his market exists. So he may just have to forfet that sale because he has no where to go with that wood.

[motohed]

I suspect one of the many reasons for not restricting log movement is because of the many problems it would cause and the uproar from the pulp wood loggers as well as the hardwood loggers. In many parts of the border between MN and WI both pulp and hardwood logs move freely back and forth. So it would not be practical to regulate that movement. Plus the Dept of Agriculture is responsible for pest control and the MN DNR somewhat controls the movement of logs.

But the bottom line reason just may be seen in the MN DNR's response to EAB being found in Houston County, MN and in the Twin City metro area. The Headlines said "well the inevitable happened." So that fatalistic response probably tells the story, they can only slow the spread of EAB down, but not stop it. Plus those two locations are where there is little to no log movement, but plenty of firewood movement.

But the restrictions on movement will surely cause some hardship for loggers once EAB is discovered in your county. I know one logger in Houston County that has a large DNR timber sale with a lot of Ash and low grade trees that he bought before the discovery. Now he cannot move that wood out of the county or across the river where much of his market exists. So he may just have to forfet that sale because he has no where to go with that wood.

The trade between RI and Ct seems to commonly like stated for your area . Ma on the other hand does have some restrictions on some species transport . I hate the thought of white Ash , as we know it being destroyed . I have a very small band mill that I have  made some ash boards on , It is a beautiful wood . It will be a shame to see it devistated by the EAB like the oak population was by the gypsy moth

[OneWithWood]

In Indiana the quarantie for EAB extends to ash logs as well as ash lumber in addition to firewood.  If you are shipping ash you need to be inspected.  Ash logs must be peeled to remove all sapwood.  Ash lumber must be kiln dried and show no wane.  Firewood movement is just a no-no.

[motohed]

I was also wondering and this may be for another topic , so be my guest to start one . But is there any other insect or disease starting to rear it's ugly head in the USA or it's bordering countries in the logging industry ? It would be good for us all to know what was coming ,maybe we could do are part as stewards of the land to help even contain it . I am not saying we should not conduct business as usual , But I sure would like to know ahead of time what to be looking for and where from .

[Wudman]

Who does your inspections?  Our exports are done by the USDA, and there is a fee charged.  And, you have to wait until they can fit you in their schedule. 

I believe there is no inspection needed if you are moving your logs within the quarantine zone.

I found this list of things to be inspected on the Wisconsin website:

    *  Logs, posts, pulpwood, bark and bark products
    * Nursery stock
    * Christmas trees
    * Outdoor Household Articles (OHAs)
    * Mobile homes and associated items

I wonder how many of those get inspected.

Ron,

I am a certified gypsy moth inspector.  All it takes is a short course to be able to identify the insect and its egg masses.  Under federal law, anything leaving a quarantine area must be inspected and certified pest free.  We have a pretty little ruubber stamp that I put on the documentation that states that the wood has been inspected and no gypsy moth was found.  Logs / Pulpwood are supposed to be throughoughly scanned to be sure there are no egg masses present.  NCDOT routinely inspected our documentation when we entered the state from Virginia.

Wudman 

[arbormike]

Not sure I understand what you mean by "the whole transport theory of firewood"

Care to elaborate?

If you are talking the quarantine on firewood because of EAB, then I feel there is no justification for using firewood as the whipping-boy. But they (Gov't, etc) needed to do something to make it look like they were doing something, and restricting firewood movement was the only solution. My opinion, and haven't seen or read anything that has changed that - yet. 

And no way will they (Gov't, etc) are going to quarantine logs and pulp wood moving about. That would be a overboard. IMO
 

Firewood is THE major reason EAB is moved around.  It is now in pockets in 15 states.  AND There are heavy quarantines in place concerning the movement of ash logs and pulp.  If you are doing this you need to be careful you are likely violating some national regs... 

[scsmith42]

I wonder if one reason why firewood is quarantined, and sawlogs are not, is because a lot of firewood comes from dead trees, versus logs that are harvested from living trees.

Seems to me that there would be a higher liklihood of having an insect in a dead tree versus a live one.

[beenthere]

Firewood is THE major reason EAB is moved around.

I really can't believe that, and have not seen any evidence that it is true. There is plenty of suspicion that it may happen with firewood movement, but there is also suspicion that the EAB has been in an area 3-5 years before any ash trees are discovered dead from the EAB.

The quarantines are all about closing the barn door AFTER the horse is out. Just look at the methods used to guide the quarantines and the areas (county borders) that are closed. If firewood is truly THE reason, then shut down the State or the region.

Sorry, but I think it is another misdirected, knee-jerk reaction to a problem, making it look like "we are doing something". When in fact, this EAB has marched unchecked and very quickly across the northeastern states from MN to the Atlantic.

I think the firewood bandwagon was just an early one to jump on, when it was panic and pandemonium. But many have benefited from this bandwagon, notwithstanding the ash tree eliminators.

Just my opinion.