Centre Wellington Fire and Rescue said they have seen an increase in burn permit sales lately due to the warmer weather.<\/p>\n
However, they want to remind the general public that to have any open air burning in the township a burn permit is needed.<\/p>\n
Centre Wellington fire prevention officer Christopher Paluch said, the burn permitting process in town only really works when everyone is paying attention to the rules.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe burn permits are really only for campfires and we want to remind people that it\u2019s only for burning good, clean wood, it\u2019s not for burning off all the old yard waste and moldy leaves [\u2026] and there is never to be any burning of leaves in the town,\u201d Paluch said.<\/p>\n
Paluch said when burning leaves, the smoke carries and it\u2019s a low hazy smoke that will upset the neighbours.<\/p>\n
He said it\u2019s also unacceptable to be burning garbage and plastic.<\/p>\n
Paluch said burn permitting has been in Centre Wellington for well over 10 years, and the fire department will not accept the excuse that people don\u2019t know they need to have a permit to have a campfire.<\/p>\n
He said as much as they don\u2019t want to they will write out tickets to those who aren\u2019t following the rules.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlways make sure you have a means of extinguishing the fire, don\u2019t let the fire get out of control, never leave the fire unattended, and paying attention to the wind is really important too,\u201d Paluch said. \u201cDon\u2019t set a fire on a real windy day because the fire is going to take off a lot quicker and that smoke is really going to carry and that\u2019s what upsets the neighbours, and that\u2019s when we start getting the phone calls.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paluch said a burn permit only costs $26 but if someone doesn\u2019t have one fines can go up to $300.<\/p>\n
He said if a fire is very large in nature then the homeowner can actually be billed for the fire trucks arriving at their residence, which is well over $500 per vehicle.<\/p>\n
Paluch said is someone isn\u2019t following the rules then people can call the station during daytime hours at 519-843-1950 to let them know.<\/p>\n
He stressed that people are asked to only burn clean brush and what he means by that is anything dry, nothing that is still green or was recently alive.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe ask that people do not burn that because when old pine twigs get off in a hurry it makes one heck of a fire and those little embers can carry, and carry, and there\u2019s the possibility that they can land and ignite a fire elsewhere,\u201d Paluch said.<\/p>\n
Paluch said people need to realize even though it seems damp outside right now the exposed grass on top is drier than paper, so if an ember was to land on it a fire would sustain itself above the actual ground level, and it will spread very quickly.<\/p>\n
He added a burn permit is good for the full calendar year, starting January 1 and expiring on New Year\u2019s Eve.<\/p>\n
A burn permit can be purchased by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Centre Wellington fire prevention officer Christopher Paluch:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n