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TOWN OF RAINY RIVER
BY-LAW NO. 1626-15
Being a by-law to control and regulate open air burning including to prescribe
the time during which fires may be set in the open air, the precautions to be
observed by persons setting fires, the requirement for fire permits and the
fee for fire permits.
WHEREAS the Council of the Corporation of the Town of Rainy River is
empowered AND WHEREAS Council is empowered under the Municipal Act,
2001, S.O. 2001, c. 25, s. 128, as amended, to pass by-laws to prohibit and
regulate with respect to public nuisances, including matters that, in the
opinion of Council, are, or could become or cause public nuisances;
AND WHEREAS the Act and O. Reg. 213/07, the Ontario Fire Code, at
s.2.4.4.4, provides that open air burning shall not be permitted unless
approved, or unless such burning consists of a small, confined fire,
supervised at all times, and used to cook food on a grill or a barbecue.
NOW THEREFORE Council for the Corporation of the Town of Rainy River
HEREBY ENACTS as follows:
1 - DEFINITIONS
For purposes of this by-law the following definitions shall apply:
"Application form" means the document in the format approved by the Chief
Fire Official and made available by the West Rainy River District Fire
Service to a person for purposes of applying for a fire permit pursuant
to this by-law.
"Approved" means approved by the Chief Fire Official or designate.
"Approved burn products" means clean dry wood or standing dead grass
"Chief Fire Official" means the Fire Chief of the West Rainy River District Fire
Service or his/her designate.
"Firefighter" includes all of the members of the West Rainy River District Fire
Service, including the Fire Chief.
"Gas" means natural gas or bottled gas such as propane or butane.
"Officer" means a by-law enforcement officer, fire fighter, or police officer.
"Open air" means any open place, yard, field or construction area which is
not enclosed by a building or structure.
"Open air burning" means any fire, portion of fire or precursor conditions that
are not wholly contained and thereby open to air.
"Outdoor Fireplace" means a manufactured non-combustible enclosed
container designed to hold a small fire for recreational purposes and
the size of which is not larger than 1 meter in any direction, and may
include, but is not limited to, chimineas. Only the combustion chamber
should be evaluated in determining size of container.
"Town" means The Corporation of the Town of Rainy River
2 - ADMINISTRATION
2.1
This by-law shall be administered by the Chief Fire Official and shall be
enforced by the Chief Fire Official, the Ontario Provincial Police and the
Town's By-law Enforcement Officers.
ANNUAL RECREATIONAL FIRES
3 - WHERE PERMIT NOT REQUIRED
3.1
A charcoal or gas barbeque or other gas fired appliances which have
CSA/CGA approval, supervised at all times, shall not require a fire
permit for the purposes of this bylaw.
4 - WHERE PERMIT IS REQUIRED
4.1
A small confined fire used for recreational purposes, less than one
metre (39 inches) in diameter, less than one metre (39 inches) in
height, and supervised at all times. These fires must be confined in a
fire pit or fire ring. Either homemade or manufactured construction is
acceptable.
4.2
Outdoor Fireplace with dimensions less than one metre (39 inches) in
diameter, less than one metre (39 inches) in height, and supervised at
all times, shall require a permit for the purposes of this bylaw. These
items must be located on a non-combustible surface extending beyond
the unit to a dimension equal to the height of the unit.
4.3
Persons burning for recreational purposes are exempted from the time
limitations defined in section 8.6 of this bylaw.
4.4
All fires must be built using clean dry wood and uncontaminated
materials. Construction products and waste materials cannot be used
as a fuel source for fires and must be disposed of in the landfill.
Commercial fire logs are also an acceptable fuel source.
4.5
Screens are required to cover all open air burning devices allowed by
this by-law. The screens shall be of sufficient size as to prevent the
escape of embers.
4.6
The West Rainy River District Fire Service shall be exempt from the
provisions of this by-law with respect to open air burnings set for the
purpose of educating, training, and risk reduction.
4.7
Permits will be issued on an annual basis coinciding with the calendar
year.
5 - REQUIREMENT FOR PERMIT, APPLICATION AND FEE
5.1
No person(s) or owner(s) of land shall set a fire or allow the setting of
a fire, or having set or allowed the setting of a fire, allow a fire to
continue to burn without first having obtained a fire permit from the
Chief Fire Official, and in accordance with the provisions of the said
permit and this by-law.
5.2
No person shall set a fire or allow a fire to burn on any land of which
he/she is not the registered owner without the written permission of
the registered owner.
5.2.1. Where an open air fire burning permit, pursuant to this by-law
has been issued, the applicant and the registered owner of the
property shall jointly and severally be responsible for any
damage or injury to persons or property with respect to the
setting of a fire or permitting a fire to burn.
5.3
Any person is entitled to a fire permit under this by-law who:
5.3.1. Completes the application form and submits same to the Rainy
River Municipal Office, at least forty-eight (48) hours in advance
of the setting of an open-air fire that requires a site inspection.
The application form shall be submitted to the West Rainy River
District Fire Service. The applicant shall provide in the
application form information indicating that he or she shall
comply with the provisions of this by-law; and
5.3.2 Pays the fee for the fire permit, and an additional fee for a site
inspection if required by the Chief Fire Official or designate.
5.3.3. Receives approval from the Chief Fire Official to conduct the
burn as described in the permit.
5.4 The fee for the issuance of a fire permit and the fee for a site
inspection shall be as set out in the Town of Rainy River current
schedule of fees.
6 - REVOCATION, SUSPENSION
6.1
A fire permit may be cancelled or suspended at any time by the Chief
Fire Official. Immediately upon receiving notice of such cancellation or
suspension the permittee shall extinguish any fire started pursuant to
the permit.
6.2
The Chief Fire Official or designate may at his or her discretion issue a
fire ban for the Town of Rainy River at which time all open air burning
shall be prohibited.
OPEN AIR BURNING
7 - BURNING REQUIREMENTS
7.1
Where a fire permit has been issued pursuant to this by-law the
applicant and the owner of the lands on which the fire is set shall be
responsible for any damage or injury to persons or property with
respect to the setting of a fire or permitting the fire to burn and they
shall insure that a competent person of at least 16 years of age is
present at all times that the fire is burning.
7.2
Unless otherwise approved by the Chief Fire Official, not more than 1.5
cubic metres (5ft) of piled material may be burned at any one time.
7.3
Only clean dry wood or standing dead grass is burned.
7.4
The fire pile must be separated by 3m (10 ft) from any hedge, fence,
vehicular roadway, overhead wire, or combustible of any kind. A
minimum of 4 metres (14 ft) of separation must be maintained from
any structure.
7.5
When burning grass, not more than 0.4 of a hectare can be ignited at
any one time. If the fire line exceeds 30 metres it must be
extinguished to less than that threshold.
7.6
The fire is attended at all times by a competent person of at least 16
years of age until it is completely extinguished.
7.7
Sufficient equipment and resources must be available at the burn site
to extinguish the fire if the fire gets out of control or is causing any
adverse effect including those set out in Section 7 of this by-law.
7.8 At the end of the burn, the fire must be completely extinguished prior
to the applicant and the owner leaving the burn site.
7.9 Residual components of a burn that are not consumed by fire are
removed, and the burn area cleared or returned to its natural condition
within two weeks of fire extinguishment.
8 - CONDITIONS OF PERMIT
8.1
Where a fire permit is issued, no person shall:
8.2
Burn any materials that are normally collected under the Town's
garbage, or recycling collection programs.
8.2.1. Materials prohibited for burning include, but are not limited to,
industrial materials, such as automobile and truck bodies, tires,
oil, grease, paint, cloth, rags, plastics, shingles, drywall,
insulation, painted or treated wood, and other materials whose
contents includes any of the above, and shall include animal
husbandry refuse, such as animal fecal deposits or manure and
animal carcasses and shall include domestic waste such as food
scraps, household plastics and shall include flammable or
combustible liquids or accelerants.
8.3
Set a fire or allow a fire to burn when the wind is in such a direction or
of such intensity so as to reduce the visibility on any roadway or cause
danger to any person or structure:
8.4
Set a fire or allow a fire to burn when the Ministry of Natural
Resources has issued a fire ban for the region.
8.5
Set a fire or allow a fire to burn when the Chief Fire Official has issued
a fire ban in the community or suspended the fire permits in the
community.
8.6
Set a fire or allow a fire to burn other than between 7 pm and 7 am,
unless otherwise expressly permitted by the Chief Fire Official.
8.7
Set a fire or allow a fire to burn without first having confirmed that the
materials to be burned meet the requirements of this By-Law, and that
they do not include waste or contaminated materials.
8.8
Set a fire in a manner that creates a nuisance or causes a disturbance.
8.9
Set a fire without having a portable fire extinguisher, operable garden
hose, or other extinguishing materials available while the fire is
burning.
8.10 In the event that a property owner is repetitively not complying with
the provisions of the By-law, the Chief Fire Official or his/her designate
may charge the cost of responding to the incident to the property
owner. The current cost would be $350.00 per response.
9 - OFFENCES AND ENFORCEMENT
9.1
A person is guilty of an offence if the person:
9.1.1. Furnishes false information in the Application for a Permit.
9.1.2. Contravenes any provision of this by-law.
9.1.3. Fails to produce a permit when requested by an officer as
defined by this bylaw.
9.2 Any person who contravenes the provisions of this by-law is guilty of
an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to the penalties imposed
pursuant to the provisions of the Provincial Offences Act, R.S.O. 1990
Chapter P.33, as amended.
9.2.1. Notwithstanding the offence provisions of this by-law, any
person who contravenes Section 2,6,3 of the Ontario Fire Code
may be prosecuted in accordance with Section 28 of the Fire
Protection and Prevention Act, 1997.
9.3
The Chief Fire Official or designate may revoke a permit if the permit
holder fails to comply with the requirements of the permit and/or any
other provision of this bylaw.
9.3.1. Upon revocation, the permit holder or owner must immediately
extinguish the fire or the fire service may extinguish the fire
with all costs incurred being recoverable from the property
owner or permit holder.
9.4
The Chief Fire Official or designate may order a fire to be extinguished
immediately if the fire:
9.4.1. Is not set in compliance with this by-law.
9.4.2. Is determined upon inspection by the Chief Fire Official or an
Officer to constitute a safety hazard or concern.
9.4.3. Upon order to extinguish, the permit holder or owner must
immediately extinguish the fire or the fire service may
extinguish the fire with all costs incurred being recoverable from
the property owner or permit holder.
9.4.4. For an uncontrolled fire the applicant and the registered owner
of the property shall be liable for costs incurred by the Fire
Department, at a rate of $350.00 per hour.
9.4.5. If any person fails to pay the fees set above [Section 8.4.4],
forthwith upon demand, the amount of the fee in default may, in
addition to any other remedies Rainy River may have, be
recovered by the Corporation of the Township of Rainy River in
like manner as municipal taxes in accordance with Section
398(2)2 of the Municipal Act S.O. 2001, c.25, against the owner
of the land, if the owner set the fire, allowed the fire to burn, or
permitted the fire to be set or to burn, in violation of the By-Law
or any permit issued under this By-law.
10 - SEVERABILITY
10.1 Should any section or subsection of this by-law or any part or parts
thereof be found by law to be illegal or beyond the power of the
Council to enact, such section or subsection or part or parts thereof
shall be deemed to be severable so that the remainder of this by-law
shall continue in force.
11 - EFFECTIVE DATE
11.1 This by-law shall come into force and take effect on January 1, 2016.
12 - SHORT TITLE
12.1 This by-law shall be known as the "Burning By-law."
READ THREE TIMES and finally passed in open Council this 14th day of
December, 2015.
_________________________
Deb Ewald, Mayor
_________________________
Veldron Vogan, CAO
Burn Permit
By-Law 1626-15
Name of Applicant: _____________________
Phone # ______________
Street Address: ________________________ Owner of Property Yes No
Signature of Owner Granting Permission:______________________________
(If applicant is not the owner)
Location of open burn if different from above: __________________________
Type of Extinguishments on Location:
"A" Extinguisher
Garden Hose
Other: _____________________
Appliance Type:
Chimenea
Fire Bowl
Outdoor Fireplace Other (please specify) ______________
Installed by: _________________________
On:___________________
Renewal:
Has your appliance changed location? Yes No
Permit Type (please circle one): Annual
Daily/Open Air-Date: ________
The applicant agrees to comply with the provisions of the Open Air Burning By-Law and
agrees to assume all responsibility for any damages occurring from the fire for which
this permit is issued.
Payment is due upon issue of the permit, cheque or cash only, if applicable. Wind must
be less than 16 km. No burning between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m (Recreational permits
are exempt from time constraints). Annual permits are effective for the current
calendar year.
__________________________
___________________ ___________
Signature of Applicant
Chief Fire Official
Date of Issue