Open Burning
By Fire Chief Mike Little
Every year when winter turns to spring and summer grill-outs begin, open burning calls flood the fire department phone lines. What is open burning? The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency defines it as “any time you light an outdoor fire without a chimney or stack.” Outdoor fireplaces and chimeneas are not open burning since both have a chimney.
Why do people open burn? There are a number of reasons, including:
- Barbecues, cookouts or campfires
- Ridding an area of agricultural waste or land-cleared waste
- Ceremonial fires such as bonfires
- Occupational fires such as fires in 55-gallon drums for warming outdoor workers
- Management of large grassy ranges in parks or farm fields
The Ohio EPA provides specific rules/guidelines for all types of open burns. Incidentally, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources also weighs in on open burning. This article will address only the Ohio EPA. However, the ODNR places additional burning restrictions during the months of March, April, May, October and November. The ODNR prohibits open burning from 6 a.m.-6 p.m. during those months.
The only fires that do not require notification of the Ohio EPA are cookouts, campfires and occupational fires. Cookouts and campfires must be on your property and attended at all times. The fire department also asks that a water source is nearby. A water source can be multiple buckets of water or a garden hose. A cookout/campfire cannot be larger than two feet high and three feet wide. Use only clean, seasoned wood or an equivalent fire fuel. Completely extinguish the fire before leaving the site.
Any other fire type requires involvement of the Ohio EPA. Depending on the type of burn, the Ohio EPA requires a notification or a permission. Use the Ohio EPA website to complete these requests. The address is epa.ohio.gov/dapc. Click on Open Burning Information found on the right side of the page.
As for those phone calls, the fire department appreciates the notification from our residents when they choose to open burn. That phone call is not permission from us to allow the burning; that can only come from the Ohio EPA, when required. The department simply notes the address of the burn, the name of the resident and a contact phone number. If burning is occurring and we receive a complaint, one of our crews will go to the address to investigate. If the burn is creating too much smoke, it is too windy or contains unapproved material (garbage is strictly prohibited), our crew will extinguish the fire.
Permissible open burning happens many times throughout the year. Our job at the Violet Township Fire Department makes sure you do it in a manner that does not a website for more details regarding lawful open burning. As always, you may contact us at 614-837-4123 with any questions. We are your “Friends for Life”.
