Free Personal Use Firewood Cutting Permits available on Ozark-St. Francis National Forests

Release Date: Apr 8, 2020

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. (April 8, 2020)   – Personal firewood cutting is free to the general public until June 1, 2020, on the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests in designated areas.

Woodcutters may contact their nearest district office for information on the steps to take in order to obtain a permit.

Woodcutters can take up to 5 cords of firewood for personal use.  A cord is the amount of tightly piled wood in a stack four feet high by four feet wide by eight feet long.

Personal use firewood cutting allows visitors to remove downed timber or to cut standing dead trees under most conditions on the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests.  Woodcutters must check with the local ranger district to receive a permit and information on any specific local restrictions or requirements other than those listed below.

In addition, forest officials request that woodcutters also follow these requirements:

• Do not fell green trees for firewood.
• Do not cut standing dead trees unless they are marked with paint as designated on your permit.
• Firewood gathering is prohibited in all developed recreation areas, campgrounds and wild and scenic river corridors.
• Firewood gathering is prohibited within timber sale units or other areas signed or shown on the firewood gathering area map, if provided, as being closed to firewood gathering.
• Trees or logs must not be felled or skidded across live streams, lakes, or reservoirs. If a tree is accidentally felled into a waterway, leave the entire tree.  Firewood gathering is prohibited within 150 feet of any running stream, pond, lake, marshy, or wet area
• The following activities are prohibited:  using over-the-terrain vehicles for skidding, yarding or skidding systems in excess of 100 feet, log trucks for hauling, or vehicles driven off roadways to gather firewood.
• Six feet is the maximum length piece that may be removed under the firewood program.
• The following are fire regulations for vehicles and chainsaws (during proclaimed fire season):
  • Chainsaw operators must have a serviceable fire extinguisher (liquid chemical 8 oz. or dry chemical 1 lb.) and shovel available at all times.
  • Chainsaws must be equipped with an approved spark arrester screen.
  • All vehicles must be equipped with a baffled muffler and serviceable tailpipe.
• Firewood obtained is intended for personal use only. Inquire by phone or email with your local District offices regarding commercial firewood permits.
• Pile or lop and scatter slash away from roads, power lines, telephone lines, ditches and stream courses.

Woodcutters should also use caution while driving on Forest Service roads.

Permit holders in Arkansas are prohibited by the Arkansas State Plant Board from moving any hardwood firewood from inside the emerald ash borer federal quarantine area, which encompasses the entire state, to outside the quarantine zone. For information on pests, quarantines, or regulated items, the Arkansas State Plant Board may be contacted at: 501-225-1598 or info@aspb.ar.gov.

Please contact your local district office for updates and more information or visit the Ozark-St. Francis National Forest website at https://www.fs.usda.gov/osfnf.

Ozark-St. Francis National Forests
City	Ranger District Office	Address	Phone
Clarksville, AR	Pleasant Hill Ranger District	2591 Hwy 21 North	479-754-2864
Hector, AR	Big Piney Ranger District – South	12000 SR 27	479-284-3150
Jasper, AR	Big Piney Ranger District – North	Hwy 7 North	479-446-5122
Marianna, AR	St. Francis National Forest	2675 Hwy 44	870-295-5278
Fifty Six, AR	Blanchard Springs Caverns Visitor Information Center	704 Blanchard Springs Rd	870-757-2211
Ozark, AR	Boston Mountain Ranger District	1803 N. 18th Street	479-667-2191 ext. 2161
Paris, AR	Mt. Magazine Ranger District	3001 E. Walnut	479-963-3076