Moving firewood in South Dakota: emerald ash borer internal quarantine, external embargo and state park labels
What the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources and Game, Fish and Parks say about the seven quarantined counties, the embargo on untreated firewood from other states, permits and compliance agreements, and the label rule in state parks.
Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 8, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.
This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It follows the emerald ash borer quarantine page of the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR), the Game, Fish and Parks camping regulations and the Don't Move Firewood South Dakota summary.
The internal quarantine
The DANR quarantine page, marked updated June 12, 2025, says there is no longer a joint federal and state quarantine, because federal deregulation of emerald ash borer took place on January 14, 2021. The state keeps its own internal quarantine covering all of Brookings, Codington, Grant, Minnehaha, Lincoln, Turner and Union counties. It was first set in May 2018 and amended in May 2020, January 2023, July 2024 and June 2025.
The page lists these regulated articles, and says the list is not limited to them.
- Any life stage of the emerald ash borer.
- Any ash nursery stock, ash logs, ash lumber and ash chips or mulch.
- Wood packing material made of ash.
- Hardwood firewood, meaning non-coniferous wood.
Regulated articles can move freely inside the seven counties. They can leave only under a permit or compliance agreement issued by DANR, and an inspection is required to get a permit. The page says people found in violation may be subject to civil or criminal penalties. It adds that although the rule covers all hardwood firewood, it is preferred that no firewood be moved.
The exterior quarantine and embargo
The same page describes an exterior quarantine and embargo, effective June 1, 2021, that bars regulated articles from areas outside South Dakota known to have emerald ash borer, unless they are properly treated. Untreated articles may enter Brookings, Codington, Grant, Minnehaha, Lincoln and Union counties by routes straight into those border counties, and may not leave the internal quarantine unless treated. Turner County is not on that entry list. The page also describes an external embargo on regulated articles, including untreated firewood, entering from all states east of South Dakota's eastern border and from all counties in other states where the beetle is known to exist.
State parks
The Game, Fish and Parks camping regulations say wood that has been inside the quarantine area may not be brought into any state park unless it carries a label certifying it as emerald ash borer treated and safe to move. In parks inside the quarantine area, outside firewood needs that label. Firewood is sold in parks or at local stores outside the quarantine area. Smooth dimensional lumber scraps that fit the firegrate are acceptable, and wood with nails, screws or hardware, including rough and pallet lumber, may not be brought in as firewood. Firewood bought at a state park inside the quarantine area may not be taken out of the park.
The Don't Move Firewood summary
According to the Don't Move Firewood South Dakota summary, marked accurate as of February 2026, the beetle was first found in South Dakota in May 2018. It says other states' quarantines on pests such as thousand cankers disease and spongy moth make it illegal to bring firewood into South Dakota from many out-of-state sources, and that, because mountain pine beetle is present, firewood should not be taken out of the state either.
For other states and provinces see the table on moving wood and firewood. Neighbours with their own pages are North Dakota and Minnesota.