Starting at noon Friday, Category 2 open burning will be prohibited in the Peace Forest District, Fort Nelson Forest District and Robson Valley Fire Zone.
The ban applies to open burning, fireworks, sky lanterns, burn barrels or cages, binary exploding targets and air curtain burners. The ban doesn’t apply to campfires 50 cm high by 50 cm wide or smaller, registered Category 3 burns or cooking stoves that use gas, propane or charcoal briquettes.
This prohibition order does not apply to campfires that are a half-metre high by a half-metre wide (or smaller), cooking stoves that use gas, propane or briquettes, or registered Category 3 burns.
“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 burning,” a statement issued by the Prince George Fire Centre said. “All persons lighting, fuelling, or using any of the open fires listed above within the restricted area are to cease doing so and to extinguish all such fires.”
The ban applies to public and private land, and will remain in effect until noon on June 2, or until the order is lifted.
Violators can be ticketed for up to $1,150 or, if convicted in court, could 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,” the Prince George Fire Centre statement added.
The most current information about fire bans in B.C is available on the B.C. government webite.
