We got a confused email over the weekend here at Don't Move Firewood, claiming that our message is meant to discourage people from heating their homes with wood. Let us be very clear- this is not true! Don't Move Firewood is completely supportive of heating homes with wood, especially with high efficiency wood stoves and wood pellet stoves (as these are better for local air quality and heat efficiency). Don't Move Firewood also is completely OK with campfires at campgrounds and campsites whenever they are permitted, provided the wood is either harvested locally, collected on site, or heat treated (also called kiln dried) to kill any pests within.
So let's review the Do's and Don't of Don't Move Firewood:
DO:
– Burn wood in your wood stove or campfire if you want to
– Adhere to all local restrictions on safe burning, such as fire restrictions due to this year's drought conditions
– Buy wood that was cut locally whenever possible
– Collect wood on site whenever legal- whether in your own woodlot, local national forest with permit, or while camping as permissable by local rules
– Buy packaged wood that is certified heat treated or kiln dried to kill insects and diseases
– Store firewood from your own trees on your own property when needed
DON'T:
– Don't take wood from your home to your campsite, or from campsite to home, if over 10 miles away
– Don't buy wood from an unpermitted, unknown vendor that cannot tell you where their wood came from
– Don't violate fire restrictions when camping- forest fires are dangerous for everyone, and the rules are no joke
– Don't get cords of wood in preparation for wintertime from a vendor that isn't familar with state and local firewood regulations; bulk supplies of wood should certainly come from within 50 miles of your home or cabin, and best if under 10 miles
– Don't mistake Don't Move Firewood for an organization trying to ruin your camping trip or prevent you from heating your home from natural sources. We are actually trying to keep insects from spreading to new places and killing your trees. That's our real goal.