Emerald Ash Borer Found in Dodge County

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture has placed Dodge County under an emergency quarantine after the dreaded emerald ash borer was spotted in Kasson. The MDA decided to enact this emergency quarantine because it is the first time the emerald ash borer has been found in Dodge County. Hence the movement of firewood and ash material out of the country will be prohibited. There are 12 other counties in Minnesota under a similar quarantine.

This means people need to buy firewood locally from an approved vendor and burn it where you buy it. Keep a watch on your ash trees for infestation. The emerald ash borer is a metallic green insect about a half-inch long. The emerald ash borer's larvae kill ash trees by tunneling under the bark and feeding on the part of the tree that moves nutrients up and down the trunk. Millions of trees have been killed in 24 states thus far due to the emerald ash borer infestation.

The emerald ash borer was spotted in Michigan in 2002. It was found in Wisconsin in 2008 and in Minnesota in 2009. It continues a march west and south.