Although I consider myself a pretty coordinated person, I’ve never be a great skier. Each winter, my boyfriend Kevin and I drive up to his family’s ski place in Vermont. After getting on all our gear and hitting the mountain, I’ll soon find myself feet up and sprawled across the ski trail as other more skilled skiers wiz by me and my poles which are sliding down the mountainside. After a couple hours, I’m exhausted from the physical and mental strain of trying to not ski into anyone or anything. We’ll head back to the condo, and after I peel away the cold wet layers of outerwear and check to make sure all my limbs are fully intact, we start a fire. After a tough day of skiing, there’s nothing better than sitting in front of a warm and toasty crackling fire with the snow lightly falling outside a darkening window. The warm flames change from yellow to orange to red before my eyes and the dried logs hiss and sputter.
Photo: When going on a ski trip or camping, make sure to purchase firewood when you get to your destination rather than beforehand, so you help minimize the spread of invasive tree-killing pests.
As I make another cup of spiced apple cider, Kevin puts another log on the fire. We always make sure to buy the firewood from the little ski village itself. That’s because it is actually illegal to transport firewood in New York State more than fifty miles from its source. It’s also illegal to bring firewood into New York State. Only if the firewood is heat treated (meaning that it is kiln-dried by bringing the core temperature up to 160°F and held at that temperature for 75 minutes) can you transport firewood greater than fifty miles or into NY State. You’re also required to carry proof of the firewood’s source, such as a purchase receipt. If you are cutting your own firewood, you must carry a self-issued certificate of firewood source.
These are not capricious regulations that have been enacted simply to benefit local firewood suppliers. There’s actually a very important reason why you shouldn’t move untreated firewood – invasive exotic, tree-killing pests. Live insects and even diseases can be lurking underneath the bark and inside the wood of untreated firewood. While there are many insects and fungi that naturally occur in our trees and firewood, dangerous tree-killing pests can also be found. Invasive pests are insects or diseases that do not naturally occur here. Instead, they have been brought over from other parts of the world, often accidentally, through increasing world trade and travel. Our forests have not evolved with pests from across the globe and therefore haven’t developed any natural defenses against such pests. Full-grown trees can be killed only a few seasons after attack. Some of the most notorious invasive tree-killing pests include Emerald Ash Borer, Asian Longhorned Beetle, Oak Wilt, and Hemlock Wooly Adelgid.
Photo: Emerald Ash Borer is an invasive beetle from Asia that kills native Ash trees like the two growing along this riverbank in the Catskills. After hitchhiking in firewood from the west, the deadly beetle was found in the Catskill region this summer for the first time ever. Soon it will be on Long Island, if it isn't already.
Our modern world is becoming an increasingly smaller one as world trade and travel continue at an unprecedented rate. We’ve become a melting pot not only of people, but of other species as well. Each of us can do our small part to slow the spread of invasive pests by not moving firewood long distances. Also, if you notice that any of the trees in your yard die suddenly, alert Cornell Cooperative Extension to make sure it is not an invasive pest. The next time you go on a ski trip or camping, make sure to purchase your firewood when you get to your destination rather than beforehand. We want to keep our trees safe from these firewood hitchhikers!
