Effective at noon on Saturday, June 27, 2015 within the
Coastal Fire Centre’s jurisdiction, campfires will only be allowed on
northern Vancouver Island, the mid-coast portion of the mainland and on
Haida Gwaii.
The Coastal Fire Centre is implementing this partial campfire ban due
to dry forest fuel conditions and rising temperatures.
It is intended to help prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety, and
it will remain in effect until the public is notified otherwise.
This prohibition covers all BC Parks, Crown lands and private lands
within the Coastal Fire Centre, within the following areas:
On Vancouver Island:
* South of Robson Bight
* South of the Nimpkish Valley
* South of Nordstrom Creek on Brooks Peninsula on the outer coast of
Vancouver Island, with the exception of the area known as the “Fog
Zone” (The Fog Zone is a band of land two kilometres wide that runs
south from Nordstrom Creek to Owen Point near Port Renfrew.)
On the mainland
* South of Knight Inlet
A map of the affected areas is available online at:
http://bit.ly/1QRWpkp
All other types of open fires remain prohibited throughout the Coastal
Fire Centre’s jurisdictional area, including backyard burning or land-
clearing burn piles. Burning barrels, burning cages, fireworks,
firecrackers, sky lanterns and binary exploding targets are also
prohibited.
This prohibition does not apply within the boundaries of a local
government that has wildfire prevention bylaws in place and is serviced
by a fire department. However, since local governments may have their
own burning regulations in place, always check with local authorities
before lightning a fire of any size.
This prohibition does not apply to CSA-rated or ULC-rated cooking
stoves that use gas, propane or briquettes, or to a portable campfire
apparatus that uses briquettes, liquid or gaseous fuel, so long as the
height of the flame is less than 15 centimetres.
Anyone found in contravention of an open burning prohibition may be
issued a ticket for $345, required to pay an administrative penalty of
$10,000 or, if convicted in court, 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.
Learn more about open burning and current burning prohibitions at
http://bcwildfire.ca/hprScripts/WildfireNews/Bans.asp
The Coastal Fire Centre covers all of the area west of the height of
land on the Coast Mountain Range from the U.S.-Canada border at Manning
Park, including Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park in the north, the
Sunshine Coast, the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands
and Haida Gwaii.
To report a wildfire, call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a
cellphone.
For the latest information on current wildfire activity, burning
restrictions, road closures and air quality advisories, go to
http://www.bcwildfire.ca
