Category 2 open burning will be prohibited across the Southeast Fire Centre starting Friday, July 11, at 12 p.m.
This includes the Rocky Mountain Natural Resource District and the Selkirk Natural Resource District.
The BC Wildfire Service says this prohibition is being enacted to help prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety.
A Category 2 open fire is defined as a fire that burns:
- Material in one pile not exceeding 2 metres in height and 3 metres in width
- Material concurrently in two piles, each not exceeding 2 metres in height and 3 metres in width
- Stubble or grass over an area that does not exceed 0.2 hectares
Additionally, the following activities are prohibited:
- Air curtain burners
- Carbonizers
- Fireworks, as defined in the Fireworks Act
- Binary exploding targets
- Burn barrels or burn cages of any size or description
- Controlled air incinerators
Southeast Fire Centre Information Officer Meghan Graceffo says fire prohibitions are imposed based on a variety of factors.
“Things that we look at are current and forecasted weather conditions, fire durations, fuel types, and ecology. The different fire prohibitions – like Category 3 open fire, Category 2 open fire, and Category 1 campfire – can be put in depending on what’s happening on the landscape,” she said.
“Right now in the Southeast, we have a Category 3 prohibition that was put in place on May 30, and the Category 2 will be put in place this Friday. But we haven’t yet met the thresholds for a campfire prohibition.”
The Widlfire Service warns anyone found in contravention of an open fire prohibition could receive a $1,150 ticket, be 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.
If your fire causes or contributes to a wildfire, you may be fined up to $1 million and/or sentenced to up to 3 years in jail, as well as be responsible for all firefighting and associated costs.
Regional wildfire conditions / outlook
As of July 7, there are currently seven wildfires burning within the Southeast Fire Centre, including one new fire in the past 24 hours and 12 in the past seven days.
“Since April 1, the start of wildfire season, we’ve had 72 wildfires with a total of 43 hectares burned. Compared to the 10-year average of 67 fires, that’s a little less than average for now. But when you look at the area burned – 332 hectares compared to 43 this year – that’s significantly more than we’ve had so far this season,” explained Graceffo.
She emphasizes that June rainfall is a key indicator of the severity of the wildfire season, and while there’s always local variability, the general trend since June 1 has shown more rainfall in the East Kootenay compared to the West.
“When we look at the drought code, recent rains have pulled values down from well above normal to closer to average for this time of year in the East Kootenays.
While in the West Kootenays, specifically the Boundary, the drought codes are now running close to the highest we’ve seen in the past five years. But that’s just for today, and it changes quite a lot depending on the weather.”
The current forecast calls for warmer-than-average temperatures in the Kootenay region, which could lead to drying conditions and increased wildfire risk.
While there is no campfire prohibition in effect yet, Graceffo reminds residents that a compliant campfire must be no larger than half a metre wide by half a metre tall.
“Anything larger than that will be prohibited as of this Friday. A campfire is quite a bit smaller than what people think. Anything larger than half a metre tall by half a metre wide is considered a Category 2 open fire.”
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