Fire Guardians & Permits

Fire Permits

MARCH 1 - OCTOBER 31, 2023

If you live or work in the Municipal District of Bonnyville No. 87 and wish to conduct any burning, you must first obtain a permit from a Fire Guardian or should you live in the Alberta Forest Protection Area, from your Agriculture and Forestry Office. There is NO CHARGE for the permit.

Fire Guardians

Zone 1
Ed Watrich 780-812-0766 Cell
- Portions of Ward 2 - West of Hoselaw
- Portions of Ward 3 - South of Twp 62

Zone 2
Vic Kolody(*) 780-826-9543 Cell
- Portions of Ward 1, 2 and 4
- East side of Moose Lake
- West side of Muriel Lake
- Crown Land in the Moose Lake area.

Zone 3
Baz Churko 780-812-9173 Cell
- Portions of Ward 5 and South of Highway 28 to Hwy 659 and Twp 63, Rge 2 in Ward 6
- Fort Kent and Ardmore

Zone 4
Diane Jenkinson 780-573-6114 Cell
- Portions of Ward 6, Except for Twp 63, Rge 2

(*) Indicates Divisions with Alberta Forest Protection Management Areas also.

Contact Agriculture and Forestry-Lac La Biche: 780-623-5388

Please notify the Dispatch Centre prior to your burn by calling 780-826-7446.

Fire Permits

Fire permits are required in the Municipal District of Bonnyville No. 87 from March 1 to October 31 of each year. Between November 1 and February 29 no permits are required for open burning in the M.D.

The Bonnyville Regional Fire Authority requests that all open burning in the M.D. be registered by calling 780-826-7446. When you register your burn during the non-permit season it will reduce the number of non-essential emergency responses made by the fire departments to investigate smoke.

When registering your burns please be prepared to provide the following information: Name, Legal land description or rural address, Material being burnt, Contact phone number, Expected completion date of the burn

Permit Months

Fire permits are required in the Municipal District of Bonnyville Number 87 from March 1 to October 31 of each year.

Between November 1 and February 29 no permits are required for open burning in the M.D.

Registration

The Bonnyville Regional Fire Authority requests that all open burning in the municipal district be registered by calling 780-826-7446.

When you register your burn during the non-permit season it will reduce the number of nonessential emergency responses made by the fire departments to investigate smoke.

When registering your burns please be prepared to provide the following information:

• Name
• Contact phone number
• Expected completion date of the burn
• Legal land description or rural address
• Material being burnt

Tips

Never burn in windy or extremely dry conditions, always keep a close eye on your fire and make sure your fire is completely extinguished before leaving the area.

Residents who conducted any burning activities over the winter are reminded to return to their burn sites to ensure the fire was completely extinguished. Winter fires that were not properly put out can often smolder underground for months and reignite in the spring when conditions are right.

Highlights of the Fire Bylaw

Section 7 - Open Fires

7.1 Between March 01 and October 31 of each year or at any other time designated by Council resolution, no person shall operate a Burning Barrel or permit an Open Fire or any other fire upon land owned, occupied or under his or her control within the M.D., unless a permit has been obtained, the provisions outlined on the permit are complied with, and burnable debris is burned.

7.2 Notwithstanding Section

7.1 a permit shall not be required under this Bylaw to conduct: a) the cooking of food using a portable appliance; or

b) recreational burning or the cooking of food in Acceptable Fire Pits or Acceptable Fireplaces, provided: i. only clean fuel is used such as natural gas, dry wood or charcoal in amounts which will be contained within the fire pit or fireplace below the mesh screen; ii. the fire pit or fireplace is not used to burn prohibited debris; iii. a means, acceptable to the Fire Chief, of controlling or extinguishing the fire is available on the property and within reasonable distance from where the fire occurs; and

iv. a responsible adult is present on the property when the fire is burning; or

c) burning in fireplaces in or attached to dwellings as provided by legislation; or

d) the fire is a public park site fire in M.D. owned campgrounds and parks where fireplaces, stoves and fire pits are provided by or approved by the M.D.; or

e) burning in an incinerator for which a permit to construct and licence to operate has been issued pursuant to the applicable legislation; or

f) the fire has been set by Fire Services for the purpose of training; or

g) the fire has been otherwise authorized by the Fire Authority.

7.5 No person shall set, permit, maintain or operate an open fire or burning barrel at any time of the year within one hundred (100) metres of a trestle or bridge structure located on the Alberta’s Iron Horse Trail. The person who set, permitted or maintained such an Open Fire or burn barrel shall extinguish the fire immediately upon the order of a Peace Officer, Fire Guardian, the Regional Fire Chief or His designate. If the person who set, permitted or maintained such an open fire fails to comply with an order to extinguish, the fire services may extinguish the fire and recover the cost of extinguishment from the person in accordance with Section 10 of this bylaw.

7.6 No person shall set, permit, maintain or operate an open fire for the purpose of land clearing at any time of the year within a Multi-Lot Country Residential Subdivision that has occupied dwelling units located within the subdivision or an adjacent subdivision within 1200m. The person who set, permitted or maintained such an Open Fire shall extinguish the fire immediately upon the order of a Peace Officer, Fire Guardian, the Regional Fire Chief or his designate. If the person who set, permitted or maintained such an open fire fails to comply with an order to extinguish, the fire services may extinguish the fire and recover the cost of extinguishment from the person in accordance with Section 10 of this bylaw.

Section 8 - Procedure to Obtain Open Fire Permit

8.1 Any person wishing to obtain an Open Fire Permit for any area within the M.D. excepting a Forest Protection Area, must apply to a Fire Guardian appointed by the M.D. at a location or locations and during a time period to be determined by the M.D. from time to time.

8.2 Each application for an Open Fire Permit must be on the form required by the Forest and Prairie Protection Act as determined from time to time or approved by the Bonnyville Regional Fire Authority.

Each application and Open Fire Permit shall contain the following information: 1. the name, address and telephone number, if applicable, of the applicant, 2. the reason an Open Fire Permit is required, 3. the legal description of the land upon which the fire will be set and the exact location of the fire on those lands including the municipal address where applicable, 4. the type of combustible material which will be burned, 5. any precautions which will be taken by the applicant to maintain control of the fire, 6. the time for which the Open Fire Permit will remain valid, 7. the signature of the applicant and the issuing Fire Guardian.

8.3 A Fire Guardian may, in his sole discretion, terminate or suspend an Open Fire Permit or application at any time.

8.4 Upon request for a permit, Fire Guardian shall consider the permit application, and may in his sole discretion: a) refuse to grant a permit; b) grant a permit with or without terms and conditions as deemed appropriate; or

c) determine that a permit is not required.

8.5 The permit fee shall be as set out in Schedule "B" and shall be paid upon approval of the permit application. (Currently Open Fire permits are Free within the M.D.) 8.6 A permit shall not be transferable.

8.7 Permits issued pursuant to this Bylaw are valid for such period of time as shall be determined and set by the Fire Guardian and the Open Fire Permit shall have endorsed thereon the period of time for which the said permit is valid.

8.8 The Fire Guardian may extend in writing the period of time that an Open Air Fire Permit is valid provided the Fire Permit has not expired.

Burnable debris as defined in the M.D. Bylaw and Alberta Environmental Legislation.

Burnable Debris" means those materials permitted to be burned in accordance with statutes and bylaws written to protect and enhance the environment, and shall include but are not limited to materials described as: i. straw and stubble; ii. grass and weeds; iii. leaves and tree prunings; iv. brush and fallen trees on newly cleared land or associated logging operations; v. used power, telegraph and telephone poles that do not contain preservatives; vi. wood material from the construction or demolition of buildings which does not contain wood preservatives; vii. solid waste from sawmills or planning mills with an annual production of less than 6500 cubic metres of lumber; viii. solid waste from post and pole operations that does not contain wood preservatives or; ix. solid waste from tree harvesting operations.

"Prohibited Debris" means any material that when burned, will result in the release to the atmosphere of dense smoke or toxic air contaminants in accordance with statutes and bylaws written to protect and enhance the environment, and shall include but are not limited to materials described as: i. animal cadavers; ii. animal manure; iii. chemicals and chemical containers; iv. combustible material in automobile bodies; v. combustible material in automobiles; vi. non-wooden material; vii. paints and painting materials; viii. pathological waste; ix. rubber or plastic, or anything containing or coated with rubber or plastic or similar substances, except rubber or plastic attached to shredded scrap steel; x. solid waste from sawmills or planing mills with an annual production in excess of 6500 cubic metres of lumber; xi. tires; xii. toxic substances; xiii. used oil; or

xiv. wood or wood products containing substances for the purposes of preserving wood.