PRINCE GEORGE – Effective at 12 p.m. (noon) PDT on Thursday May 11, 2023, Category 2 and Category 3 open burning will be prohibited across the Prince George Fire Centre. This prohibition will remain in place until 12 p.m. (noon) PDT on Sunday October 15, 2023, or until the otherwise rescinded. All persons lighting, fueling or using any of the open fires listed above within the restricted area are to cease doing so and to extinguish all such fires.
This prohibition has been implemented to help prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety due to the high grass fire hazard and increased incidence of human-caused wildfires associated with Category 2 and Category 3 open burning.
This prohibition order does not apply to Category 1 open fires (campfires) that are a half-metre high by a half-metre wide (or smaller) or cooking stoves that use gas, propane or briquettes. Check with local government authorities for restrictions before lighting any fire.
Specifically, this prohibition refers to the following activities:
“category 2 open fire” which means an open fire, other than a category 1 campfire, that
- burns material in one pile not exceeding 2 m in height and 3 m in width,
- burns material concurrently in 2 piles each not exceeding 2 m in height and 3 m in width, or
- burns stubble or grass over an area that does not exceed 0.2 ha.
“category 3 open fire” which means an open fire that burns
- material concurrently in 3 or more piles each not exceeding 2 m in height and 3 m in width,
- material in one or more piles each exceeding 2 m in height or 3 m in width,
- one or more windrows, each not exceeding 200 m in length or 15 m in width,
- stubble or grass over an area exceeding 0.2 ha.
Also prohibited are the activities listed below (Wildfire Act, Section 12):
- Fireworks;
- Sky lanterns;
- Binary exploding targets;
- Burn barrels or burn cages of any size or description; and,
- Air curtain burners.
This prohibition applies to the following geographic boundaries as illustrated below. A map of the affected area is also available online. This prohibition is specific to all public and private land unless specified otherwise in an enactment.
Anyone found in contravention of an open-burning prohibition may be issued a violation ticket for $1,150, may be required to pay an administrative penalty of up to $10,000 or, if convicted in court, may be fined up to $100,000 and/or sentenced to one year in jail. If the contravention causes or contributes to a wildfire, the person responsible may be ordered to pay all firefighting and associated costs.
For more information on open burning, visit our website.
To report a wildfire, unattended campfire or open burning violation, call 1-800-663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cell phone or through the BC Wildfire Service public mobile app.
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Contact
Prince George Fire Information Team
BC Wildfire Service | Ministry of Forests
250 561-4629
BCWS.PGFCInformationOfficer@gov.bc.ca
Connect with the Province of B.C. at www.gov.bc.ca/connect