DNR says approved firewood only

St. Paul, Minn. — With the busy Fourth of July weekend just ahead, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is reminding campers that they can only bring pre-approved firewood onto state lands.

The reason is to slow the spread of the emerald ash borer, an insect that has killed millions of ash trees in the U.S.

The DNR's Ed Quinn says campers have a couple of different options.

"Firewood that you purchase at the park itself or firewood that you purchased from an approved vendor and then the third category is it's essentially construction lumber. It's things like two-by-fours and so forth," Quinn said.

Quinn said campers will be required to prove they have approved firewood. A list of approved vendors can be found on the DNR's Website.