A new campfire ban will be implemented in Maple Ridge due to the hot and dry conditions across the region.
The Category 1 ban will be in effect starting Thursday, July 16, for public safety and to reduce wildfire risk.
Those who disobey the rules can face fines up to $1,000.
“This expands the current Category 2 & 3 fire ban to include Category 1 fires,” said the City of Maple Ridge online.
Category 1 fires include recreational fires or First Nation ceremonial fires. The ban includes fires that are contained within a pit or permanent walls; that are no larger than 0.5 metres high and wide; that are not within 15 metres of any building, structure, or overhead wires or cables – even if there is a water hose connected to an available water supply and shovel present to extinguish it.
Currently there is a ban on: campfires; larger fires like bonfires; fireworks; sky lanterns; burn barrels and cages; controlled air incinerators; sir curtain burners, carbonizers, and binary exploding targets.
There is even a ban on wood fired hot tubs , pizza ovens, or other wood fired devices, unless they are vented through a structure that has a flue and is incorporated in a building.
The ban does not apply to CSA-rated or ULC-rated barbecues, camping-type stoves or portable campfire devices using propane, natural gas – or briquettes, when they are used on private property.
For more information go to: MapleRidge.ca/Fire-Bans, or email: Bylaws@MapleRidge.ca, or call 604-467-7305.
Residents are being advised to use alternative methods to dispose of yard waste, including dropping off at the Maple Ridge Recycling and Waste Centre at 10092 236 St., Maple Ridge. Tipping fees apply.