The business impact of this emergency rule depends on the number of nurseries that sell/distribute ash nursery stock outside the county, firewood producers/dealers that sell/distribute outside the county, saw mills that move untreated ash stock outside the county, and green wood waste that is moved outside the county.
Marquette County has a total of seven licensed nursery growers that could possibly be growing ash nursery stock. Those growers will not be able to sell ash nursery stock outside of the quarantine area, though discussions with the Wisconsin Nursery Association indicate that few, if any, nurseries continue to sell ash trees. There is also one known firewood dealer in Marquette County. Firewood dealers would need to be certified under s. ATCP 21.20 to sell firewood outside of the quarantine area. To obtain certification a firewood dealer pays a $50 annual certification fee to DATCP and treats the firewood in a manner that ensures it is free of EAB. There are five sawmills in Marquette County and an estimated four other tree service/wood processing facilities that deal with ash. To sell ash wood products outside of the quarantine area they will need to enter into a compliance agreement with DATCP or APHIS that authorizes movement of ash products outside of the quarantine only when there is assurance that the movement will not spread EAB to other locations. Certification and compliance agreements will require some additional recordkeeping on the part of those businesses. Environmental Impact
This emergency rule will not have a significant impact on the environment.
Federal and Surrounding State Programs
Federal Programs
Under the federal Plant Protection Act, APHIS has responsibility for excluding, eradicating and controlling serious plant pests, including emerald ash borer. APHIS has instituted statewide quarantines on the movement of all ash wood for Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia; in addition to portions of Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Tennessee, and Wisconsin; and the entire District of Columbia.
APHIS has enacted quarantines for Adams, Brown, Buffalo, Calumet, Columbia, Crawford, Dane, Dodge, Door, Douglas, Fond du Lac, Grant, Green, Iowa, Jackson, Jefferson, Juneau, Kenosha, Kewaunee, La Crosse, Lafayette, Manitowoc, Milwaukee, Monroe, Oneida, Outagamie, Ozaukee, Racine, Richland, Rock, Sauk, Sheboygan, Trempealeau, Vernon, Walworth, Washington, Waukesha and Winnebago counties in Wisconsin. The quarantines include restrictions on the movement of any hardwood (non-coniferous) firewood.
Surrounding State Programs
Surrounding states where emerald ash borer has been identified (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota and Michigan) have state and federal quarantines that prohibit the movement of regulated articles out of quarantined areas. A regulated article can only move out of quarantined areas after it is certified by USDA or state officials.
DATCP Contact
Questions and comments (including hearing comments) related to this rule may be directed to:
Brian Kuhn or Shahla Werner
Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection
P.O. Box 8911
Madison, WI 53708-8911
Telephone (608) 224-4590 or (608) 224-4573
