Moving firewood in Washington: exterior quarantine, heat treatment and labels

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It follows the firewood exterior quarantine that the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) adopted on February 20, 2026, which took effect on August 18, 2026.

What the quarantine says

According to the WSDA rulemaking page, the purpose is to prevent the introduction and spread of invasive plant pests, plant diseases and bee pests that travel on or inside untreated firewood. The rule text in chapter 16-476 WAC says no person shall transport untreated firewood into Washington, for sale or use inside the state, from any location outside the state. Its list of pests that can travel in firewood includes emerald ash borer, spongy moth, Asian longhorned beetle, spotted lanternfly, pine wood nematode, Sirex woodwasp and Japanese cedar longhorn beetle.

What counts as firewood

The rule defines firewood as all wood of any species, cut or not cut, split or not split, regardless of length, that is in a form and size for use as fuel or is destined for use as fuel. It leaves out kiln dried dimensional lumber and wood chipped to a piece size no greater than 1 inch in two dimensions. It also leaves out logs and wood going to a sawmill for dimensional lumber, a pulp or paper mill, a wood pellet plant, a plywood plant, a wood biomass refinery or power plant, or a reconstituted wood or composite plant, for use in their primary manufacturing process.

Wood the quarantine does not apply to

Firewood harvested and remaining within Washington.
Compressed wood bricks, pellets and other processed wood products used for fuel.
Non-firewood products and logs for industrial use, such as sawlogs, pulpwood or wood chips going to facilities that make lumber, paper or manufactured wood products.

Treatment, label and records

Section 16-476-003 says firewood from outside Washington must be heat treated to a minimum wood core temperature of 71 degrees C (160 degrees F) for at least 60 minutes, or an equivalent treatment approved by the department. It states that air drying is insufficient, and that treated wood must be stored in a way that limits reinfestation. Wood that meets the standard may come in with a label that states its source and carries the statement "Approved Pest Free".

Providers of "Approved Pest Free" firewood keep records for at least two years from the date of treatment: the source, the treatment method, the date of treatment and the volume treated.
Providers give those records to the department at no cost when asked. Official phytosanitary certificates from the provider's state department of agriculture may be used to verify method and volumes.
Packaged firewood certified by USDA may also come in, if the label shows the USDA certification and the producer's name and address.

Penalties and impound

Section 16-476-004 says violators are subject to civil penalties of up to US$5,000 per violation under RCW 17.24.141, and each violation is a separate offense. If an inspection finds firewood held or transported in violation, the department notifies the owner, and the director may impound the wood under RCW 17.24.091 to prevent the threat of infestation. The WSDA page names the same penalty and impound authority.

The council's outreach page

The Washington Invasive Species Council Buy It Where You Burn It page describes the quarantine as prohibiting the entry of firewood from out of state, with only heat-treated wood labeled "approved pest free" allowed from outside. It also asks campers not to move firewood within the state, and points to the National Park Service guideline of getting firewood ten miles or less from the destination. The council lists the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the Oregon and Idaho invasive species councils and the Washington State Department of Agriculture among its partners on the campaign.

How it differs from Oregon

The Washington rule names every location outside Washington. Oregon's firewood rule names locations outside Oregon, Washington and Idaho, and Oregon also has a five-county ash quarantine. See moving firewood in Oregon.

For other states and provinces see the table on moving wood and firewood.