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TextDon't Take Firewood Outside of Fairfax County
Jan. 7, 2009
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Fairfax County residents should not take any firewood outside the county or nearby areas, or they may face state and federal fines. State and federal quarantines for the emerald ash borer ban the transport of firewood to prevent the spread of this insect.
Firewood may be transported within the state quarantine areas — Fairfax, Arlington, Fauquier, Loudoun and Prince William counties and the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax City, Falls Church, Manassas and Manassas Park. However, firewood may not be transported from these areas to any other part of the state. The federal quarantine bans the movement of firewood across state lines.
Violating the state quarantine is a class 1 misdemeanor, which carries a maximum fine of $2,500 and a year in jail. Violating the federal quarantine could result in a fine up to $250,000.
When camping outside the area of the state quarantine, use firewood from local sources, instead of transporting it.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture imposed a quarantine on July 11, 2008. The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs issued a similar quarantine on July 14, 2008.
The emerald ash borer, a serious threat to ash trees, was discovered in Fairfax County last summer. These insects have killed more than 25 million ash trees in the U.S. The borers are native to China, Korea and Japan, and they first arrived in this country from Asia in the 1990s.
For more information about the emerald ash borer, contact the Fairfax County Forest Pest Branch, at 703-324-5304, TTY 711.
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Contact: Merni Fitzgerald, Director, Office of Public Affairs
703-324-3189, TTY 711, Media Pager: 703-324-NEWS (6397)
publicaffairs@fairfaxcounty.gov
To request this information in an alternate format, call 703-324-3187, TTY 711
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