DANVILLE — Out-of-town traffic during the Labor Day season is getting attention in more ways than one this year.

Usually the concentration of state and local law enforcement for DUIs, a segment of this year’s drivers during the holiday weekend are being watched for something else — firewood.

The insect population of emerald ash borers — considered dangerous to ash trees — has continued to spread south in recent years. Its presence was confirmed in March of this year in Iroquois County in trees at northbound and southbound rest stops along Interstate 57 near Loda.

One of the ways this small green insect travels is via firewood transported from one area to another. That has the state agriculture officials warning would-be campers this weekend to only buy locally grown firewood from the area they are camping in and not carry firewood with them.

It is illegal to transport firewood across state lines under a 2009 Illinois law.

The city of Danville is not allowed to sell firewood and mulch from its yard waste site to people from Indiana for fear of sending the beetle or its larvae across state lines.

Ken Konsis, executive director of Vermilion County Conservation District, is expecting a decent crowd of campers this weekend at the Forest Glen camping area.

“This is usually the last fling for everybody,” he said of the three-day weekend. “It’s not as big as Memorial Day.”

Last year, five traps to detect an infestation were set up in both Forest Glen and Kennekuk county parks. None of the insects were found, but Konsis has said he has suspicions that the ash borer is already in the county.

Nonetheless, campers coming into Forest Glen must follow strict rules about the firewood they have in their possession.

Konsis said federal laws indicate campers can’t bring in firewood from out-of-state locations. State law dictates that firewood can’t be brought in from quarantined areas.

The infestation of the beetles had only been documented as close as McLean County prior to the Iroquois County announcement. Twenty-one counties in northern and central Illinois have been under quarantine since the beetle was discovered in 2002.

As far as Forest Glen is concerned, the park asks that all firewood brought into the park is burned in the park. Konsis said campers who check in to camp and have firewood with them are questioned about where it came from.

Despite the attention, some people are unaware of the ash tree-destroying pest.

“There are always some that have never even heard of it,” Konsis said.

There are seven species of ash tree in Illinois, five of which can be found in Vermilion County. The tree is used many times in urban landscaping as well.

The insect is a small, metallic-green beetle that is native to Asia. Its larvae burrow into the bark of ash trees, causing the trees to starve and eventually die. While the beetle does not pose any direct risk to public health, it does threaten the tree population.

In the last eight years, the insect has killed more than 25 million ash trees. The emerald ash borer is difficult to detect, especially in newly-infested trees. Citizens should watch for metallic-green beetles about half the diameter of a penny on or near ash trees that are showing signs of disease or stress. Other signs of infestation in ash trees include D-shaped holes in the bark of the trunk or branches and shoots growing from its base.

FYI

State and local law enforcement are launching campaigns to stymie the number of impaired drivers. Roadside safety checks will be set up for throughout the Labor Day weekend by Danville police and state troopers to check for DUIs as well as traffic violations, such as not wearing a seat belt. Officers will concentrate on the late night hours of midnight to 3 a.m. — deemed the most dangerous by state transportation officials.