Utah Summary:
The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food, Utah Plant Pest Diagnostic Lab at Utah State University, and the US Forest Service strongly advise using local firewood in Utah to prevent the spread of forest pests. The updated Utah Firewood Quarantine, which went into effect September 1, 2019 regulates the sale of firewood from out of state sources without appropriate heat treatment and labeling. Invasive forest pests such as the emerald ash borer and pine shoot beetle pose a significant threat to both Utah’s urban trees and its native forests. An infestation of the newly discovered velvet longhorned beetle is located in the greater Salt Lake City area, and this pest can be transported on both green and seasoned firewood. Many visitors to Utah live in areas under quarantine for pests such as emerald ash borer, gypsy moth, pine shoot beetle, and imported fire ant, and it is illegal to move any regulated items (most firewood is considered a regulated item) from quarantined zones out of those states and into Utah. Eighteen states in the Central and Eastern US prohibit bringing hardwood firewood originating from Utah into their state, to prevent the movement of thousand cankers disease. This summary is accurate to the best of DMF staff abilities as of 4 October 2019.
Utah General Web Resources:
- Utah Firewood Quarantine (new!)
- Utah Department of Agriculture and Food Reminds Utahns About the Firewood Quarantine
- Hungry Pests, Utah page
Utah Pest Specific Resources
- Utah State University, Featured Pests
- Utah State University, Integrated Pest Management
- Velvet longhorned beetle pest profile
- Pine shoot beetle information and maps
- Thousand Cankers Disease information and map archives
- Imported Fire Ant National Quarantine Map
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