Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has added eight more counties to its spotted lanternfly quarantine area in an effort to stop further spread of the invasive species before spring hatch.
The newly added counties—Cambria, Cameron, Franklin, Lackawanna, Montour, Pike, Wayne, and Westmoreland—are not completely infested but have a few municipalities with a known infestation. They join the 26 counties already under quarantine: Allegheny, Beaver, Berks, Blair, Bucks, Carbon, Chester, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Delaware, Huntingdon, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Mifflin, Montgomery, Monroe, Northampton, Northumberland, Perry, Philadelphia, Schuylkill, and York.
Businesses, including farms, that operate within or cross through the quarantine counties must comply with certain regulations, including obtaining a permit demonstrating that they can identify the spotted lanternfly and will take steps to stop its spread.
An invasive pest native to Asia, the spotted lanternfly was first discovered in Berks County in 2014. It poses a major threat to agricultural commodities, including grapes, tree fruit, hops and hardwood.