Partial Category 1 Campfire Prohibition for the Coastal Fire Centre



PARKSVILLE – Effective at 12:00 p.m. (noon) PDT on Thursday, July 16, 2026, Category 1, 2 and 3 open fires will be prohibited throughout the Coastal Fire Centre’s jurisdiction, with exceptions for Category 1 in parts of the North Island and Sunshine Coast. Category 1 campfires remain permitted in the Campbell River Forest District, North Island Central Coast Forest District, Haida Gwaii Forest District and Sunshine Coast Forest District. See the below map for more detail.

Category 2 and Category 3 fire prohibitions will remain in place throughout the Coastal Fire Centre. This prohibition is being modified to help reduce human-caused wildfires and for public safety in areas where weather conditions have changed. This prohibition will be in place until October 31, 2026, or until the order is rescinded.

Anyone choosing to light a Category 1 campfire in permitted areas must do so responsibly and in accordance with Section 20 of the Wildfire Regulation:

  • Do not burn in windy conditions
  • Establish and maintain a fuel break
  • Do not leave the fire unattended
  • Ensure the fire is fully extinguished before leaving the area
  • Carry out fire control immediately and/or report the fire if it spreads beyond the established fuel break

Category 2 and Category 3 open fires remain prohibited throughout the Coastal Fire Centre’s jurisdiction in addition to the following activities and equipment:

  • Fireworks (Fireworks Act)
  • Binary exploding targets
  • Burn barrels or burn cages of any size or description
  • Controlled air incinerators
  • Air curtain burners
  • Carbonizers

These prohibitions apply to all areas within the Coastal Fire Centre that are outside of municipal boundaries. Municipalities may follow BC Wildfire Service prohibitions or may impose different prohibitions based on conditions in their local area. If you are in a municipality, be sure to check if local prohibitions are in place. If you are within a regional district or improvement district, this prohibition applies as well as any local prohibition issued by the local authority.

This prohibition also applies to the following types of land within municipal boundaries:

  • Parks, conservancies and recreation areas (Park Act)
  • Recreation sites, recreation trails, interpretive forest sites and trail-based recreation areas (Forest and Range Practices Act)
  • Ecological reserves (Ecological Reserve Act)
  • Wildlife management areas (Wildlife Act)
  • Private managed forest land (Private Managed Forest Land Act)

An updated map of this prohibition area will be issued soon. For a description of fire centre boundaries, please visit: Fire Centres – BC Wildfire Service

To report a wildfire, unattended campfire or open burning violation, call 1 800 663-5555 tollfree, *5555 on a cell phone or submit an electronic report through the BC Wildfire public mobile app.

For the latest information on current wildfire activity, burning restrictions and more:

Contact:

Fire Information Officer
Coastal Fire Centre | BC Wildfire Service
250-951-4209 | BCWS.CoFCInfo@gov.bc.ca