Burning permits information
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Fire Danger Rating Current Burning Restrictions |
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General Burning Information
- When do I need an open burning permit?
- When is a permit not needed?
- What can I burn with a permit or in an approved burner?
- What materials cannot be burned?
- What are burning permit restrictions?
- How are the dates for Spring Restrictions Determined?
- What is a burning ban?
- How do I report a wildfire?
When do I need an open burning permit?
- When the ground is not snow covered.
By definition, in Minnesota Statute 88.16 subd. 2: "Snow-covered" means that the ground has a continuous unbroken cover of snow, to a depth of three inches or more, surrounding the immediate area of the fire, sufficient to keep the fire from spreading. - When you have a fire in an approved burner and it is in use between 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Please note that while DNR issues statewide regulations, if you live within a municipality that controls the open burning, local permits or more stringent regulations may apply.
- For a "campfire"...
"Campfire" means a fire set for cooking, warming, or ceremonial purposes, which is not more than three feet in diameter by three feet high, and has had the ground five feet from the base of the fire cleared of all combustible material. - When the ground is "snow-covered"...
"Snow-covered" means that the ground has a continuous unbroken cover of snow, to a depth of three inches or more, surrounding the immediate area of the fire, sufficient to keep the fire from spreading. - For a fire contained in a charcoal grill, camp stove, or other device designed for the purpose of cooking, or heating.
- For a fire in an approved burner, and there is no combustible material within five feet of the base of the burner, and it is in use between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. Prior to 6:00 p.m., a permit is required to burn in a burner.
Approved burner information
What can I burn with a permit or in an approved burner?
- Vegetative material, such as: grass, leaves, brush and untreated lumber.
What materials cannot be burned?
- Hazardous wastes
- Industrial solid waste
- Demolition debris of commercial or institutional structures. (A farm building is not a commercial structure.) Burning of any structure should be referred to a forest officer.
- Salvage operations
- Motor vehicles
- Oils
- Rubber
- Plastics
- Chemically-treated materials
- Other materials which produce excessive, or noxious smoke, such as, but not limited to: tires, railroad ties, chemically-treated lumber, composite board, sheet rock, wiring, paint, or paint filters.
- Garbage, defined as discarded material resulting from the handling, processing, storage, preparation, serving, or consumption of food.
- Any DNR Forestry Office
- Any Fire Warden - A Fire Warden is a volunteer commissioned by a DNR Forest Officer to issue open burning permits for a specific geographic area. This could be a county official, a county sheriff, local Fire Marshal or even your neighbor.
- For residents of Aitkin, Beltrami, Cass, Crow Wing, Goodhue, Kanabec, Itasca, Pine,and Wabasha counties there is an On-line system for obtaining a burning permit. There is a $5 charge per calendar year for this service.
What are burning permit restrictions?
- Beginning in 1999 the DNR instituted burning permit restrictions in the fire prone portions of the state each spring. During this period of traditionally high fire danger, burning permits are not issued. A variance to permit open burning, however, may be obtained for special circumstances such as:
- prescribed fire projects
- approved agricultural practices
- construction projects, if an economic hardship exists
Variances may only be issued by DNR Forestry Personnel. Dates of the restrictions are posted on this web site each spring.
- Often the media and the public wrongly perceive that this restricting the issuing or burning permits is a "burning ban".
- Recreational campfires are still permissible under restricted conditions.
How are the dates for Spring Restrictions Determined?
- Restrictions are determined based on the availability and condition of the fine flashy fuels. These fuels are referred to as one and ten hour fuels. One-hour and ten-hour fuels are the smaller fine fuels that can be totally wet, and when conditions change (sun comes out, winds pick up), they can dry and burn in a matter of hours.
- The vegetation in the fields, swamps, and other open areas is standing dead (cured) and will not increase in moisture content except by local weather patterns. The fire danger in these areas remains a concern until new vegetation comes in (green up).
- These fine fuels (usually grass and small brush) are the majority of fires responded to each year as, when they are dry, they ignite easily and can spread fire quickly. Therefore, when restrictions are put in place each spring, these are the fuels taken into consideration. Thus, it is possible that, even though there may be snow in the woods, restrictions will be put in place due to the open fields being snow free.
- Once restrictions are established in an area, they remain in place until green up occurs and fire danger is drastically reduced.
- Under extremely dry conditions, the Commissioner of Natural Resources, or another unit of government, may declare a "burning ban" for a specified area within the state. When this occurs, not only existing permits are canceled and new permits not issued, but burning in approved burners, recreational fires, and even smoking outdoors may be prohibited, depending on the fire danger. This action is generally taken when fire conditions become extreme across a broad area of the state (for example, a number of counties or large geographic region).
- Much more frequently the DNR uses restrictions or the non-issuance, or revocation of burning permits to control open burning when local fire danger is high. A burning ban is used only in the most severe conditions and is more restrictive.
- Report any suspected unauthorized fires by dialing 911. (If 911 is not available in your area, your local DNR Forestry Office will provide you with the numbers to call.) The best policy is, "If in doubt, report it." An early report of a fire enables a quicker response time and helps to keep fires small.
- In reporting a fire, providing complete information is extremely important. From this information, the dispatcher will dispatch equipment and firefighters to the fire location. Accurate information will help determine how many firefighters and how much equipment may be needed to put the fire out.
- If you don't have 911 in your area and the number you are given to report the fire is long distance - call collect.
- The following information should be provided when reporting a fire:
- Your name and phone number. There may be a need to obtain further information from you after your initial report.
- Location of the fire by street address, or section, township and range. If this information is not known, give accurate directions and distances from known roads or landmarks.
- If there are any structures, or other improvements threatened by the fire.
- The approximate size of the fire.
- The type of fuels the fire is burning in and what type of fuels it is approaching.
- The type of terrain and access into the fire.
- Time the fire started, as well as who started it, if known.
- If there are any people working on the fire.
