Cookeville workshop to address state’s need for firewood producers

NASHVILLE, TN, UNITED STATES

05.04.2017

Story by Leon Roberts 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (May 4, 2017) — An alliance of state, federal and non-governmental partners are hosting a free public workshop 1 to 3 p.m. Thursday, May 25 at the Leslie Town Centre in Cookeville, Tenn., that will show participants how to develop their own small businesses to sell heat-treated firewood to fill increasing demand at campgrounds in Tennessee.

Officials will provide information about the pests that can travel in untreated firewood, about business opportunities in selling certified, heat-treated firewood and about the methods used in preparing the firewood. To date, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee State Parks and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District campgrounds have enacted firewood policies to restrict visitors from bringing in firewood that might be infested with tree-killing pests.

Tree-killing insects and diseases are becoming an increasing problem in Tennessee and all over the United States. These insects and diseases can't move far on their own, but when people transport firewood in their cars and trucks they can jump hundreds of miles.

“As public agencies continue to protect our forests through these firewood policies, more citizens will need to have sources of safer firewood,” said Trish Johnson, director of Forest Conservation for The Nature Conservancy in Tennessee. “This demand is creating new opportunities for local entrepreneurs to help our forests and gain a new source of income.”

Representatives from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, Division of Forestry, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, The Nature Conservancy, and The University of Tennessee are involved with the workshop. The May 25 workshop is the second of a series that will be held in 2017. It will qualify attendees for pesticide points and Continuing Forestry Education points.

Please register for the workshop by May 18, 2017 by contacting Katie Pareigis with The Nature Conservancy at 615-383-9909 or [e-mail]. Directions to workshop location will be provided at registration.

For information about Tennessee’s forest pests: protecttnforests.org.
For more information about risks associated with movement of firewood: dontmovefirewood.org
For more information about where to find local or certified heat-treated firewood: firewoodscout.org

(For more information about the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District, or visit the district’s website at www.lrn.usace.army.mil.,on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/nashvillecorps, and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/nashvillecorps.)

• Date Taken: 05.04.2017
• Date Posted: 05.04.2017 12:00
• Story ID: 232569
• Location: NASHVILLE, TN, US