An Asian beetle that first turned up in Michigan is threatening to spread to North Carolina. The Emerald Ash Borer arrived in the U.S. about ten years ago. Since then it's spread from the midwest, to most of the states surrounding North Carolina. Brian Haines works for the state Forest Service.
Brian Haines: "While its not come into North Carolina yet, its really just a matter of time before it does. And the serious threat really is to the sort of urban and rural trees, you know, here in the state. In other parts of the country it can kill tens of millions of ash trees, specifically, just in southeastern Michigan alone its killed millions of trees."
Haines says one of the ways to slow the spread of the beetle is to make sure you buy local firewood. He says the insect could move into North Carolina in firewood brought in from neighboring states.
