{"id":29641,"date":"2026-07-02T16:21:15","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T23:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/?p=29641"},"modified":"2026-07-02T16:21:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T23:21:15","slug":"changes-to-open-fire-prohibitions-in-the-northwest-fire-centre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/changes-to-open-fire-prohibitions-in-the-northwest-fire-centre\/","title":{"rendered":"Changes to open fire prohibitions in the Northwest Fire Centre"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>SMITHERS \u2013 Effective at 12 p.m. (noon) PDT on Friday, July 3, 2026, <a href=\"https:\/\/can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fe1.envoke.com%2Fext%2Fclick%2Fgo%2Ffaa453df8cbc47189fe615cd255921aa%2F69677d440c4707686d46a46dfda05676%2F022101245f0dea556eb950e86cf45e16&amp;data=05%7C02%7CFIREINFO%40gov.bc.ca%7C60f5638b5220484348ee08ded8873aac%7C6fdb52003d0d4a8ab036d3685e359adc%7C0%7C0%7C639186272468886675%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=%2BfVBo%2FuUYKZqMgwdeYGD1pJpJ%2FuRgEWQPnoPifi5AcA%3D&amp;reserved=0\">Category 2<\/a> open fire prohibitions <strong>will be rescinded<\/strong> across the entire Northwest Fire Centre, due to forecasted precipitation and below-seasonal temperatures. <a href=\"https:\/\/can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fe1.envoke.com%2Fext%2Fclick%2Fgo%2Ffaa453df8cbc47189fe615cd255921aa%2Fa6ba4c54286ee587bcc6a46dfda0d215%2F022101245f0dea556eb950e86cf45e16&amp;data=05%7C02%7CFIREINFO%40gov.bc.ca%7C60f5638b5220484348ee08ded8873aac%7C6fdb52003d0d4a8ab036d3685e359adc%7C0%7C0%7C639186272468898019%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=90uYKCQm%2BBRzMybshlCWEmRLHW6elfmDIlr9%2FxXH%2FnM%3D&amp;reserved=0\">Category 3<\/a> open fires <strong>remain prohibited<\/strong> across the Northwest Fire Centre, which includes the Nadina Forest District, Coast Mountain Forest District and Skeena Stikine Forest District.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These prohibitions will remain in place until 12 p.m. (noon) PDT on September 25, 2026, or until the public is otherwise notified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fe1.envoke.com%2Fext%2Fclick%2Fgo%2Ffaa453df8cbc47189fe615cd255921aa%2Fa6ba4c54286ee587bcc6a46dfda0d215%2F022101245f0dea556eb950e86cf45e16&amp;data=05%7C02%7CFIREINFO%40gov.bc.ca%7C60f5638b5220484348ee08ded8873aac%7C6fdb52003d0d4a8ab036d3685e359adc%7C0%7C0%7C639186272468907575%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=dLrTDqEaWgp6v6XKetKTCN9xoHSl8L4YOM8hI3JbKmk%3D&amp;reserved=0\">Category 3<\/a> open fire is a fire that burns:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Material concurrently in 3 or more piles, each not exceeding 2 metres in height and 3 metres in width<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Material in one or more piles, each exceeding 2 metres in height or 3 metres in width<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>One or more windrows, not exceeding 200 metres in length or 15 metres in width<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Stubble or grass over an area exceeding 0.2 hectares (2,000 square metres)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Additional prohibited activities and equipment<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The following activities and use of the following equipment, materials and substances will also be prohibited:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Air curtain burners<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Carbonizers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Please view a map of the affected areas below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"791\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/app\/uploads\/sites\/786\/2026\/07\/NWFC-Prohibition-Map-07.02.26-1024x791.jpg\" alt=\"Map of the Northwest fire Centre with a layer showing where prohibitions apply\" class=\"wp-image-29646\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/app\/uploads\/sites\/786\/2026\/07\/NWFC-Prohibition-Map-07.02.26-1024x791.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/app\/uploads\/sites\/786\/2026\/07\/NWFC-Prohibition-Map-07.02.26-300x232.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/app\/uploads\/sites\/786\/2026\/07\/NWFC-Prohibition-Map-07.02.26-768x593.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/app\/uploads\/sites\/786\/2026\/07\/NWFC-Prohibition-Map-07.02.26.jpg 1078w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The prohibition applies to all areas that are outside of municipal boundaries. In addition, this prohibition applies to the following types of Crown land within municipal boundaries:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>parks, conservancies and recreation areas (<em>Park Act<\/em>);<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>recreation sites, recreation trails, interpretive forest sites and trail-based recreation areas (<em>Forest and Range Practices Act<\/em>);<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>ecological reserves (<em>Ecological Reserve Act<\/em>);<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>wildlife management areas (<em>Wildlife Act<\/em>);<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>private managed forest land (<em>Private Managed Forest Land Act<\/em>); and<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>all lands in the District of Stewart municipality.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This prohibition does not apply to <a href=\"https:\/\/can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fe1.envoke.com%2Fext%2Fclick%2Fgo%2Ffaa453df8cbc47189fe615cd255921aa%2F3bc53b014985e7a43446a46dfda14ee6%2F022101245f0dea556eb950e86cf45e16&amp;data=05%7C02%7CFIREINFO%40gov.bc.ca%7C60f5638b5220484348ee08ded8873aac%7C6fdb52003d0d4a8ab036d3685e359adc%7C0%7C0%7C639186272468916509%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=m0OF%2FQLf3j5WhOkfu6pwqTLqYxkkvrE%2BWNkXVNepGR4%3D&amp;reserved=0\">Category 1<\/a> (campfires) than are half-metre high by half-metre wide or smaller, or the use of cooking stoves that use gas, propane or briquettes. It also does not apply to <a href=\"https:\/\/can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fe1.envoke.com%2Fext%2Fclick%2Fgo%2Ffaa453df8cbc47189fe615cd255921aa%2F04e2e68474691cfd8c56a46dfda1ca2a%2F022101245f0dea556eb950e86cf45e16&amp;data=05%7C02%7CFIREINFO%40gov.bc.ca%7C60f5638b5220484348ee08ded8873aac%7C6fdb52003d0d4a8ab036d3685e359adc%7C0%7C0%7C639186272468925340%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=eHAQ8W7ttw3w96D3VJcaRGfAfsIA1tx%2FUxGTHH8oR2E%3D&amp;reserved=0\">Category 2 <\/a>open fires, which refers to any fire that burns material in one pile not exceeding 2 metres in height and 3 metres in width, material concurrently in 2 piles, each not exceeding 2 metres in height and 3 metres in width, or stubble or grass over an area that does not exceed 0.2 hectares (2,000 square metres).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Municipalities may align with BC Wildfire Service prohibitions or impose their own prohibitions based on local conditions. If you are within 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 regional district or improvement district. BC Parks follows BC Wildfire Service prohibitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Anyone found in contravention of an open fire prohibition may be issued a ticket for $1,150, required to pay an administrative penalty of $10,000, or, if convicted in court, fined up to $100,000 and\/or sentenced for up to one year in jail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If your fire causes or contributes to a wildfire, you may be fined up to $1 million and\/or sentenced to up to three years in jail, as well as be responsible for all firefighting and associated costs. More information about the Wildfire Act and Regulation is available <a href=\"https:\/\/can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fe1.envoke.com%2Fext%2Fclick%2Fgo%2Ffaa453df8cbc47189fe615cd255921aa%2Fc45bb63036e532f3efb6a46dfda244af%2F022101245f0dea556eb950e86cf45e16&amp;data=05%7C02%7CFIREINFO%40gov.bc.ca%7C60f5638b5220484348ee08ded8873aac%7C6fdb52003d0d4a8ab036d3685e359adc%7C0%7C0%7C639186272468934013%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=fQHIcAC%2FnJKfYcU2zCgLiSFaYwb4qQ6woCyLf7FeNN0%3D&amp;reserved=0\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Contact<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>BC Wildfire Service<br>Information Officer<br>Northwest Fire Centre<br><a href=\"mailto:BCWS.NWFCInfo@gov.bc.ca\">BCWS.NWFCInfo@gov.bc.ca<\/a><br>250-876-6844<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SMITHERS \u2013 Effective at 12 p.m. (noon) PDT on Friday, July 3, 2026, Category 2 open fire prohibitions will be rescinded across the entire Northwest Fire Centre, due to forecasted precipitation and below-seasonal temperatures. Category 3 open fires remain prohibited across the Northwest Fire Centre, which includes the Nadina Forest District, Coast Mountain Forest District &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/changes-to-open-fire-prohibitions-in-the-northwest-fire-centre\/\">Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8271,"featured_media":23857,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[543,72,32],"class_list":["post-29641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-information-bulletins","tag-app","tag-nwfc","tag-prevention"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8271"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29641"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29641\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29648,"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29641\/revisions\/29648"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23857"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.gov.bc.ca\/bcwildfire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}