Minnesota Summary:
The State of Minnesota restricts the movement of firewood into and within the state, and there are multiple counties within the federal and state emerald ash borer quarantine in Minnesota- which means it is illegal to take untreated firewood out of those counties and into the rest of Minnesota. New counties will be added to the quarantine in October and November 2019 so make sure to check where your wood is coming from. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture certifies producers of heat treated firewood which can be taken anywhere in the state. It is against Minnesota state law to bring unapproved firewood into any Minnesota state park, state forest, or day-use area. Approved firewood types include; packaged certified heat treated firewood, firewood purchased from within the park being visited, or non-ash firewood harvested and bought within the same county as the park. Firewood is available for sale at all Minnesota state parks. The Chippewa and Superior National Forests as well as Isle Royale National Park also restrict the movement of firewood into their forests and lands. There are gypsy moth quarantines in place for Lake and Cook Counties – these quarantines mean that firewood and many other wood products may not be removed from these areas. It is illegal to transport hardwood firewood from any area infested with thousand cankers disease into the state of Minnesota. Additionally, it is illegal to transport pine wood with bark from any state infested with mountain pine beetle into Minnesota. This summary is accurate to the best of DMF staff abilities as of 17 September 2019.
Crossing from the USA into Canada: It is against Canadian law to bring firewood from the USA into Canada for personal use without an appropriate permit. The firewood must also be packaged and labeled to show it has been heat treated to a minimum core temperature of 56°C for a minimum of 30 minutes. Canada encourages buying local and burning local firewood through their campaign buylocalburnlocal.ca.
Crossing from Canada into the USA: It is against US law to bring any untreated firewood for personal use (including both hardwood and softwood/conifer) from Canada into the USA.
Minnesota Web Resources:
General Information
- Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Firewood Alert
- Minnesota Department of Agriculture Firewood Information Page
- State of Minnesota Approved Firewood Law
- Federal officials to deregulate ash borer but Minnesota ag leaders vow to continue fighting the spread, January 2021
- Play, Clean, Go invasive species education for Minnesota
- Chippewa National Forest Firewood Closure
- Superior National Forest Firewood Restrictions
- State of Minnesota firewood law
- Isle Royale Firewood Regulations
- Judge C.R. Magney State Park firewood recommendations (scroll down to find firewood section)
- StarTribune Camping Advice – See “Remember Firewood Rules”
Pest Specific Information
- Minnesota Department of Agriculture Interactive EAB Map
- Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Emerald Ash Borer page
- Minnesota Department of Agriculture Emerald Ash Borer page
- Minnesota Department of Agriculture Gypsy Moth page
- Minnesota Department of Agriculture Exterior Quarantine for Thousand Cankers Disease of Walnut
- “Mountain (pine) beetle threatens Minnesota’s pine forests,” Minnesota National Public Radio, December 3rd 2014
- Emerald Ash Borer Federal Quarantine and Authorized Transit map
- European Gypsy Moth North America Quarantine Map
- Thousand Cankers Disease information and map archives
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