Categories of Outdoor Fires
If you light a fire, you must ensure it is extinguished before leaving the area.
What are the burning categories?
Category 1 Fires
A burning permit is not required for Category 1 fires.
Your municipality may have a burning restriction that supersedes the provincial burning map restrictions. Municipal restrictions may include: the time burning is permitted, the type of burning appliance that is permitted, the location in the municipality where burning is allowed or not, etc.
Category 1 fires are:
- Piles no larger than three metres in diameter,
- Piles no more than two metres high,
- Multiple piles must be at least 10 metres apart from each other,
- No more than two piles burning at one time,
- Burning of tree limbs, leaves, brush or cut grass is permitted,
- Fire must be attended at all times.
Open fires are any fires not in an enclosed CSA approved appliance (e.g. propane or charcoal fueled appliances such as BBQs, propane or natural gas fire bowls, and Coleman-style camp stoves). Chimneys are considered open fires.
Category 2, 3, and 4 Fires
A burning permit is required for Category 2, 3, and 4 fires.
Please note: specific guidelines from a Forest Service Officer must be followed at all times.
Category 2 Fires
PLEASE NOTE: the minimum requirements for burning is green on the Fire Weather Index.
- Requires written permission and possible pre-inspection,
- Three or more piles burning at one time is permitted,
- Piles must be three metres or smaller in diameter,
- Piles cannot be more than two metres high,
- Multiple piles must be at least 10 metres apart from each other,
- Burning of tree limbs, leaves, brush, or cut grass is permitted, and
- Fire must be attended at all times.
OR
- Requires written permission and possible pre-inspection,
- Burning of only one pile at any given time,
- Piles can be bigger than three metres I diameter,
- Piles can be more than two metres high,
- Multiple piles must be at least 10 metres apart from each other,
- Burning of tree limbs, leaves, brush, or cut grass is permitted, and
- Fire must be attended at all times.
Category 3 Fires
PLEASE NOTE: the minimum requirements for burning is green on the Fire Weather Index.
- Requires written permit,
- Specifically, for any size fire that is used for the purpose of treating plants in a blueberry field, and
- Fire must be attended at all times.
Category 4 Fires
PLEASE NOTE: the minimum requirements for burning is green on the Fire Weather Index.
- Requires written permission and possible pre-inspection,
- Only for prescribed burning3 for the purpose of land-clearing,
- Fire must be attended at all times.
3Prescribed burning is the knowledgeable application of fire to a piece of land for the specific forest management or other land use.
What am I allowed to burn?
The following materials may be burned for any category of fire:
- Grasses,
- Leaves,
- Branches, or
- Other woody debris
What am I not allowed to burn?
The following material cannot be burned under any circumstances:
- Used lubricating oil,
- Hazardous substances,
- Biomedical waste,
- Motor vehicle tires,
- Animal or human cadavers,
- Railway ties and other wood treated with wood preservatives,
- Trash, garbage, litter, or other waste from commercial, industrial, or municipal operations,
- Materials containing rubber or plastic,
- Spilled oil or oil production by-products, except as required for the purposes of forest management or fire suppression treatment,
- Materials disposed of as part of reclamation operations, or
- Animal manure.
There are other materials that cannot be burned. For more information on proper handling and disposal of other waste materials, please call the Environment Division at 1-866-368-5044.
Can I burn waste materials from building or construction sites?
No, you cannot burn any waste materials from building or construction sites, or waste resulting from building demolition, unless permitted under the Fire Prevention Act. For example, lumber or pressure-treated wood cannot be burned.
Are there specific times when I may burn?
Permissions for all burn categories are based on weather and current fire conditions in your area.
No domestic brush burning or campfires are permitted between 8am and 2pm, although exceptions may be made for Category 2, 3, or 4 permits.
Burning is permitted outside of fire season, from November 15-March 15; inclusive.