126 Jacobi et al: Firewood Transport by National and State Park Campers Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 2011. 37(3): 126–138 Firewood Transport by National and State Park Campers: A Risk for Native or Exotic Tree Pest Movement W.R. Jacobi, B.A. Goodrich, and C.M. Cleaver Abstract. Untreated firewood has the potential to harbor insects or pathogens lethal to trees in urban and natural forest ecosystems. Campers at 15 camp- grounds in seven Colorado, U.S., State Parks and 30 campgrounds in 13 National Parks in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming were surveyed in 2007-09 to determine camper home states, firewood presence, firewood state origins and risks of firewood harboring pests. Sixty-six percent of Colora- do State Park campers had firewood but only 4% had firewood brought from out-of-state origins. Sixty percent of National Park campers had firewood and 39% had firewood from out of state, equating to 329,919 campers potentially bringing out-of-state firewood in one year to surveyed parks. Forty-one per- cent of out-of-state firewood was brought by campers from nonneighboring states, indicating long distance transport of firewood occurs. Of all firewood present in National Parks, 32% was purchased inside the park, 25% was purchased outside the park and 17% was from camper residences. Fifty-three percent of firewood had evidence of previous insect presence and 39% had fungal infestation. Camper movement of untreated firewood has the potential to be a high risk pathway for distribution of live tree pests throughout North America, and educational and mitigation actions should be implemented. Key Words. Campgrounds; Exotic Pests; Firewood; Invasive Pests; National Parks; Pathway Risk Analysis; State Parks; Unprocessed Wood; Urban Pests. Firewood is an ideal habitat for many pests, and long-distance dispersal by humans can facilitate insect introductions or dis- ease infestations in urban and natural forests (Liebhold et al. 1995; Allen and Humble 2002; Tkacz 2002; Crocker et al. 2007; National Plant Board 2010). While many National and State Park campgrounds sell firewood on site, campers may arrive with firewood, either purchased in small bundles at re- tail stores or cut and collected from home or other locations. There are several recognized pathways for the movement of tree pathogens and insect pests within the United States, in- cluding nursery stock, logs and other unprocessed wood, and wood packing materials (Liebhold et al. 1995; Poland et al. 1998; Tkacz 2002; Pimental et al. 2005; Haack 2006; Lawrence 2006); however, little research exists on the risks of moving tree pests into new environments by transporting firewood to popu- lar recreation and camping areas in the western United States. Exotic (nonnative) species are not the only tree pests of concern when firewood is transported across state lines. Cur- rently, there are many exotic and native species of insects and fungi that should be prevented from moving into unin- fested areas of the U.S., including the exotic emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis), Asian long-horned beetle (Ano- plophora glabripennis), gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar), the pathogen responsible for sudden oak death (Phytophthora ramorum), the native goldspotted oak borer (Agrilus coxal- is), and the native pathogen and vector responsible for thou- sand cankers disease of black walnut (Geosmithia morbida sp. nov. and Pityophthorus juglandis, respectively). Exotic insects most likely introduced on solid wood packing mate- rials (e.g., crating, dunnage, and pallets) in the past include Asian longhorned beetle, at least eight genera of bark bee- tles and five genera of ambrosia beetles including the banded ©2011 International Society of Arboriculture elm bark beetle (Scolytus schevyrewi), European wood wasp (Sirex noctilio), and at least five genera in the Cerambycidae family (Poland et al. 1998; Haack 2006; Lawrence 2006). Firewood transport has assisted the dispersal of emerald ash borer (EAB) to new areas of infestation, and camper-assisted dis- persal has increased the spread of EAB in the U.S. (Michigan Department of Agriculture 2006; Crocker et al. 2007). Quaran- tines, aimed at stopping human-assisted movement of ash prod- ucts (including firewood, logs, and untreated ash lumber) that could harbor EAB to areas outside the infested counties, began in Michigan in 2002 and now include most of Michigan and sur- rounding states (Haack et al. 2002; USDA APHIS 2009). How- ever, in recent surveys of confiscated or voluntarily surrendered firewood at the Mackinac Bridge connecting the Lower and Upper peninsulas of Michigan live wood-boring insects were found in 23% of firewood pieces, indicating that the long-dis- tance movement of firewood with insect pests still occurs, even from quarantined areas (Haack et al. 2010). Modeling efforts by BenDor et al. (2006) and Muirhead et al. (2006) implicated the overwhelming importance of human-caused movement of EAB to distant areas along with natural movement of the beetle. Nor- mal insect flight accounted for most of the newly-infested areas near known infestations in Michigan, but outlying infestations were attributed to human dispersal. They also found firewood bundles were brought from EAB-quarantined areas at a rate proportional to the number of campsites (Muirhead et al. 2006). While there is potential for the movement of fungi via fire- wood, little research has been conducted on the specifics of this pathway as a risk. The vast biodiversity and unique and poorly understood ecological processes of many fungal species may explain the lack of representation of fungal pathogens in inva- sion ecology studies (Desprez-Loustau et al. 2007). In addition,
May 2011
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