National Firewood Month Is the Campfire Rule to Know

That bundle of firewood in your trunk is doing more than waiting to become a campfire. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on October 1 that it is joining partners across the country to recognize National Firewood Month, an October effort to raise awareness about the risks of moving firewood. The message from the agency's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is blunt: buy firewood where you burn it, because insects and diseases hiding inside the logs can hitch a ride into forests that have never met them.

The reasoning behind the rule is grim. Tree-killing insects and plant diseases can hide inside or on the surface of firewood, and while these pests do not travel far on their own, a trunk load of logs can move them hundreds of miles into new territory. APHIS named three of the worst offenders in its announcement: spongy moth, Asian longhorned beetle, and emerald ash borer. Each has already carved a path through American trees, and each moves fastest when a person gives it a lift.

"Invasive pests pose significant risks to our forests, parks, and communities," USDA Under Secretary Dudley Hoskins said in the announcement, adding that observing federal and state firewood quarantines helps protect the trees people rely on for recreation, wildlife habitat, shade, and clean air. Several states already maintain quarantines that limit how untreated firewood can be moved within or across state lines, APHIS said, and the quarantines are designed to head off the kind of damage that turns into expensive control and eradication campaigns later.

The timing is deliberate. Fall camping, hunting season, and winter home heating are all getting underway, which means millions of people are loading wood into cars, trucks, and campers right about now. APHIS is using National Firewood Month to reach travelers before they move, not after the damage shows up. National Firewood Month runs all October, with the agency inviting people to join the conversation using the hashtag #FirewoodMonth.

What you are actually supposed to do

The guidance, according to APHIS, comes down to four habits: buy firewood near where you will burn it, whether that is a campsite, a cabin, or your own home, because local wood means wood from the immediate area that stays there; buy certified heat-treated firewood when you are buying from a store, since heat treatment eliminates insects and diseases, and look for a state or federal certification mark on the packaging; gather firewood on site when it is allowed, since many parks and campgrounds permit gathering small amounts locally, though the agency says to check with the land manager first; and burn it all where you bought it instead of hauling leftover firewood home or to a different site. National Firewood Month frames all of this as one simple rule: keep firewood local.

Those rules cover more people than you might think, and National Firewood Month was built with those travelers in mind. APHIS specifically called out campers, hunters, anglers, and RV owners, who can move pests in firewood without realizing it, and urged them to transport only certified heat-treated wood or to buy at the destination. Home and cabin owners who heat with wood should buy from reputable local dealers who understand quarantine restrictions, the agency said, noting that some dealers may not even know the rules exist. Even fall tourists and leaf peepers get a mention: the agency asks them to purchase firewood locally, buy certified heat-treated wood, or gather on site when allowed.

"Healthy forests depend on everyone doing their part to stop invasive pests," Forest Service Chief Schultz said in the announcement. "Buying firewood where you burn it is one of the simplest ways people can protect the places they love, from neighborhood parks to our national forests." Schultz added that local firewood keeps harmful insects from hitchhiking into new areas, which safeguards wildlife habitat, outdoor recreation, and the communities that rely on American trees.

One small habit, forests worth keeping

Big planting programs and restoration projects matter, and this announcement targets a smaller and more personal habit. New York's recent tree-planting boom and the new life sprouting from the Sycamore Gap stump show how much people care about keeping trees around. National Firewood Month asks for something far less dramatic than planting a forest: just change where you get the wood, and burn what is left where you bought it.

APHIS also asks anyone who spots something suspicious to report it. The agency points people to its October 1 announcement for the full guidance, and asks travelers to report suspected invasive pests to their local State Plant Health Director. Invasive species do not read maps, which is the whole point of National Firewood Month: the forests in the next state over are not as far away as they look.