The Spotted Lanternfly has some Pennsylvania residents on high alert.
Saturday morning, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture opened the doors of the Oley Valley Middle School in Berks County for a public meeting.
The purpose was to educate the community on how they can protect themselves and stop the spread of the pest.
"The biggest way people can help is by being observant," Berks County Commissioner Christian Leinbach said.
The Spotted Lanternfly is an invasive insect that came to Berks County from Asia. It poses a threat to more than 50 plants, and endangers the state's grape, apple, stone fruit and logging industries.
"It is known to cause mortality on grapes," Sven-Erik Spichiger of the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture said. "But it may also be a severe pest on orchard trees timber and other commodities."
In order to stop any potential damage, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture quarantined five Berks County townships.
The quarantine originally covered District and Pike townships, but was expanded Wednesday to include Hereford, Rockland and Washington townships, as well as Bally and Bechtelsville boroughs.
"We know it to be confined to about a 30 square kilometer area right now," Spichiger said. "We are looking for additional reports so we can truly know how far it has spread."
The quarantine means any material or object that can cause further spreading of the pest cannot be moved outside of those areas without inspection.
"We are asking that you do a self check in the area of vehicles that you are driving, before you leave the quarantined area," Dana Rhodes of the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture said.
For residents in those affected areas it also means reporting the insect in any of its life stages, especially in egg masses.
For now the length of the quarantine is until further notice.
Violators face a penalty of $20,000 dollars.
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