Emerald Ash Borer Program

EAB Quarantine & Compliance Agreements Questions and Answers

Important—NO regulated articles are legally allowed to move outside of a quarantine area (untreated or treated), unless they are accompanied by an NCDA&CS certificate. NCDA&CS Certificates are only available when a Compliance Agreement is signed between the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the company, city, county, agency, or organization interested in moving the regulated material.

What is a quarantine?

A quarantine is a temporary rule intended to help prevent a potentially dangerous or destructive pest or disease organism from spreading outside a known infested area into new areas. In the case of emerald ash borer (EAB), the quarantine is designed to limit the movement of potentially infested firewood or other materials such as live ash trees that might harbor EAB life stages.

What areas of North Carolina are currently quarantined for emerald ash borer?

The entire state of North Carolina is under quarantine for EAB.

What are regulated articles?

The following are three categories of regulated articles: 

• The emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire)
• Ash trees (Fraxinus sp.), ash limbs and branches, ash stumps and roots, ash logs, ash lumber, ash chips and ash bark chips
• Firewood of any hardwood (deciduous) species

What is the definition of firewood?

Firewood means wood cut to lengths less than four feet long. This includes firewood cut for personal use.

What is a Compliance Agreement?

A Compliance Agreement is a document that describes how a company will properly treat regulated articles to mitigate the spread of EAB and adhere to the quarantine law. A NCDA&CS representative is available to discuss Compliance Agreements in more detail at the request of any business or other entity involved in moving regulated articles. NCDA&CS can provide free training and also help determine how any business can lower the risk of spreading EAB with the least amount of disruption to business practices.

Do I need a Compliance Agreement?

If you are moving regulated articles (e.g. ash material or hardwood firewood) out of a quarantine area you will need a Compliance Agreement. Ash material that originates in North Carolina can be moved freely throughout the state and adjacent quarantine areas (i.e. Virginia and western Tennessee under Federal quarantine), but must be accompanied by a compliance agreement if moving to a non-quarantine area. Contacting the NCDA&CS for further information is recommended.

How do I get a Compliance Agreement?

You can contact NCDA&CS Plant Industry Division at 1-800-206-9333 or email us at newpest@ncagr.gov and let us know you are interested in a Compliance Agreement for emerald ash borer. An NCDA&CS official will work with you to determine which Compliance Agreements, if any, are needed, explain the requirements, and work with you to implement any needed quarantine restrictions.

Why is all hardwood firewood regulated instead of only ash firewood?

Once a log has been cut and split, identifying ash wood from other hardwood species becomes extremely difficult. While this is especially true for the casual firewood user and homeowners, the experience of other EAB regulatory agencies across the nation have shown that the same has often applied to firewood business too. Therefore, due to the potential risk associated with moving EAB-infested firewood, all hardwood firewood is regulated. There are no EAB quarantine restrictions on coniferous species of firewood, such as pine, spruce and fir.

Does the quarantine affect movement of hardwood (non-ash) nursery stock or hardwood (non-ash) wood products?

With regards to EAB there are no restrictions on the intrastate movement of non-ash hardwood products such as nursery stock, logs, branches, green lumber or chips in North Carolina. However, the movement of all hardwood firewood out of quarantined counties is regulated.

Does the quarantine affect the movement of material within the quarantine counties?

There are no legal restrictions for the movement of regulated materials within the quarantine area (this area includes movement through Virginia and the adjacent areas of Tennessee which are under Federal quarantine for EAB).

What can I do with my ash material from a quarantined county?

There are multiple options available:

• Ash material can be brought to a disposal site within the quarantine.
• Material can be utilized within the quarantine for any legal purposes.
• Firewood of any hardwood (deciduous) species

If removing ash material or other regulated articles from the quarantine, the following options may be used but require a Compliance Agreement with NCDA&CS and/or USDA. We advise that this Compliance Agreement be in place before beginning processing operations.

• Material can be chipped to 1 inch or less in two dimensions (two of three measurements—length, width and thickness must be 1” or smaller).
• Material can be debarked, which means complete bark removal plus ½ inch of wood.
• Material can be composted; material must reach at least 140° Fahrenheit for four days and the pile must be turned after four days.
• Material can be heat treated; the center of the wood must reach at least 140° Fahrenheit for 60 minutes.
• Material can be kiln dried; must meet USDA guidelines.
• Material can be fumigated by a licensed fumigator.
• Material can be transported to an approved facility during the period of November 1 to March 1.

If I sign a Compliance Agreement, will I be required to keep records?

Yes. If your company ships regulated articles under a Compliance Agreement or with NCDA&CS certification, you will need to maintain those shipping and/or certification records for 36 months, unless otherwise specified.

Do I have to keep records of shipments or treatments that do not involved regulated articles?

NCDA&CS does not require records for treatment of shipment of non-regulated articles.

Can I bring firewood from a non-quarantined area into a quarantined area?

There are no legal restrictions on firewood that originates from a non-quarantined area. At this time the entire state is under quarantine. Firewood is allowed to come into the state from a non-quarantined area. Once the firewood enters into a quarantined area, it becomes a regulated article.