Maine Forest Service: cold weather still no time to haul firewood

No matter how cold it gets, it’s never a safe time to haul firewood far
from home. That’s the message the Maine Forest Service is reminding
hunters, skiers and other outdoor enthusiasts who pack warm clothes and
firewood for trips this season.

Like summer campers, autumn and winter recreationists often pack
firewood from home when they travel to hunting camps and ski chalets.
The long-distance movement of firewood can bring with it long-distance
movement of tree-killing pests.

“Some people think it’s safe to move firewood when it’s cold out,” said
Maine Forest Service Entomologist Charlene Donahue. “But that’s not
true.”

“If unused firewood gets left here in the winter, the insects inside the
logs will come out next spring. Freezing temperatures rarely kill
insects. After all, they live outside,” she added.

The Maine Forest Service is asking winter outdoor enthusiasts to do
their part for forest health – today and every day -- by leaving
firewood at home. Local or kiln dried wood is best for the hearth,
stove, and forest, they say.

The U.S. Forest Service says invasive species is one of the top threats
facing America’s forests. The emerald ash borer, a particularly harmful
invasive insect, has already killed more than 20 million ash trees in
Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. If brought to Maine via firewood and left
unburned, it would emerge to threaten Maine's ash trees.

EAB is moving Eastward across the United States. Just last month, forest
health experts found EAB in West Virginia – at a campground. The bug has
also been found near Pittsburgh, Penn.

“It’s only a 12-hour drive from there to here,” said Donahue. “It’s not
that far at all, only a day’s drive to Maine.”

Donahue added that forests throughout Maine, the nation’s most forested
state, are currently experiencing a relatively healthy period.

“We haven’t had any new major insect infestations recently,” said
Donahue, “and the public's help regarding firewood movement will help
keep it that way."

To view a video message about the firewood invasive species issue,
visit: http://www.na.fs.fed.us/nanews/archives/2007/archives07.shtm