Ohio expands ash quarantine statewide

REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio (AP) - Ohio's emerald ash borer quarantine has become statewide.

That makes it illegal to remove ash trees, ash materials, or hardwood firewood from any of Ohio's 88 counties into a non-quarantined area. The state was already under a federal ban on out-of-state movement.

State agriculture officials have been expanding the quarantine as more infestations were found, and they say the latest expansion comes after new confirmations of the tree-killing beetle in the Wayne National Forest in southeast Ohio and in neighboring states.

Officials urge Ohioans to use local firewood to help avoid spreading infestations.

The Asian beetle has killed tens of millions of ash trees in the Midwest since 2002.

Online:

Ohio Department of Agriculture ash borer page:

http://www.agri.ohio.gov/eab/