Door County has become the 22nd county in Wisconsin quarantined for the emerald ash borer. According to the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, the insect was found in Door County for the first time north of Fish Creek, on private property in the Town of Gibraltar last week. The quarantine will apply to all of Door County. It prohibits ash wood products & hardened firewood from being moved out of the county to areas that are not infested. For private citizens, this means that neither residents nor tourists may take firewood from Door County to non-quarantined counties. For businesses handling wood products that could carry EAB, it means that they must work with with the state agency to assure that their products are pest-free before shipping. The quarantine will be in place temporarily until the US Department of Agriculture completes the process to enact a federal order. The emerald ash borer is a native of China & probably entered the United States on packing material, showing up first in Michigan ten years ago. The insect burrows under the bark of ash trees, destroying the tree’s ability to take up nutrients & water.
