Firewood should be burned where campers buy it

The South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources is reminding campers to buy firewood where they burn it to minimize the movement of emerald ash borer and other pests.

Ash is a popular firewood in South Dakota. If an ash tree is infested before it was cut, it may still contain EAB insect larvae that could emerge in the summer and infect new trees.

EAB has been found in Minnehaha, Lincoln and Union counties. To help slow the spread, DANR established a year-round quarantine in those counties and neighboring Turner County.

PHOTO: A group of friends roasting marshmallows on a campfire at their campsite. (iStock – halbergman)