Open Air Fires and Fireworks

Fire Status is set at Moderate

Daytime burning is permitted from November 1 to March 31.

Minden Hills no longer issues daytime burn permits.

On March 28, 2024, the Council for the Township of Minden Hills adopted a new Open Air Burning By-Law. The new by-law was jointly created by the Fire Chiefs of each of Haliburton County's lower-tier municipalities and is being implemented on a County-wide scale to create consistent regulations and strengthen public safety.

View the Open Air Burning By-Law 24-36

A major change is that the Township will no longer issue permits for daytime burning. Contractors are encouraged to contact Minden Hills Fire Department to make arrangements in this regard. The new by-law's general provisions can be found below.

PART 2 – GENERAL PROVISIONS

2.1 No person shall set, maintain, or cause to be set or maintained, Open Air Fire except as authorized by this By-law.

2.2 No person shall set, maintain, or cause to be set or maintained, Open Air Fire on any roadway, highway, park, easement, beach, or other public property owned or operated by the Township of Minden Hills without prior permission from the Municipality.

2.3 No person shall set, maintain, or cause to be set or maintained, Open Air Fire between the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. and between the dates of April 1st to October 31st.

2.4 Every person setting, permitting to be set, maintaining, or permitting to be maintained, an Open-Air Fire shall comply with the following conditions:

a responsible person is available and in attendance at all times until the fire is completely extinguished,
the material is burned in a single pile that is less than two (2) meters in diameter and less than two (2) meters high,
only burn wood or by-products of wood,
not burn noxious materials,
fire must be at least three (3) meters from combustible materials, property line, buildings, fences, trees and roadway,
the responsible person has tools and/or extinguishing agent adequate to contain and completely extinguish the fire,
the fire must be completely extinguished before the burn site is vacated.

No person shall start a fire outdoors that is larger than 2 meters for the purpose of burning piled wood, brush, leaves or discarded wood products.

Any uncontrolled outdoor fire or improper disposal of ashes, coals or briquettes is the owner's responsibility for any damage to property or injury to persons, and is liable for all costs incurred by the Fire Department.

When can I have a fire?

When having a campfire, the following conditions must be met:

There are no fire restrictions or fire bans in effect
The fire is located on a non-combustible surface or material
The fire is contained within a metal, rock, brick or other non-combustible fire pit
Smoke from the fire does not cause an annoyance or irritation to adjacent persons, properties or premises
The size of the fire cannot be bigger than one (1) square meter and flames cannot be higher than one (1) meter in height
The fire is not located within three (3) meters of a structure, fence or property line
The fire must be continuously supervised by a competent adult
There are adequate tools and/or water on hand to put out the fire
The fire must be put out and cool to the touch before leaving the fire area

All burning is prohibited during a period of poor air quality or poor weather conditions.

Rules for burning

To burn the following rules must be followed:

No Day Time Burning allowed, burning is only allowed from 7:00 p.m. -7:00 a.m.
A responsible person is available and in attendance at all times until the fire is completely extinguished.
The material is burned in a single pile that is less than two (2) meters in diameter and less than two (2) meters high.
Only the burning of wood or by-products of wood; no garbage, waste materials, shingles, tar, plastics or other foreign or restricted materials
Fire must be at least three (3) meters from combustible materials, property line, buildings, fences, trees and roadway.
The responsible person has tools and/or extinguishing agent adequate to contain and completely extinguish the fire.
The fire must be completely extinguished (cool to the touch) before the burn site is vacated.
Conditions and the site allow it to burn safely until extinguished.
You take the necessary steps to tend, control and extinguish the fire.
There are no fire restriction or fire bans in effect, such as April 1st till Oct 31st each year.

Fire Bans

A Total Fire Ban means no open air fires. During a total fire ban you cannot light, maintain or use a fire in the open, or carry out any activity in the open that causes, or is likely to cause, a fire. This temporary measure is put in place to prevent human-caused fires when the fire hazard is extreme or when firefighting resources are limited.

During a fire ban all outdoor fires, including charcoal briquettes, wood chip, wood smoke barbeques and wood smokers are restricted. Please wait until the ban is lifted to dispose of ashes and coals.

It is your responsibility to be aware of fire bans, fire restrictions and requirements.

Please contact the Fire Chief for more information.

Fireworks

Before discharging or setting off fireworks within the Township of Minden Hills, please review and learn the rules and requirements. The safest way to enjoy fireworks is to go to a public display hosted by trained and certified professionals.

Fireworks requirements are outlined in By-Law 24-37 - Fireworks.

Fireworks are not allowed during:

any fire ban or fire restriction as set out by Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) or the Chief Fire Official or designate
winds exceed 25 km or during any conditions considered as an undue fire hazard

Reporting a Fireworks Complaint

If there is a fire or life-safety emergency due to fireworks that poses an immediate danger to someone's health or property, call 911.

When reporting a fireworks complaint, please be prepared to provide the following:

the address or closest address of where the fireworks are or were being discharged
details including if people have been injured
your contact information

If you choose to have a family or an informal neighbourhood fireworks show a permit is not required, the following outline the requirements:

Hosted in a place or in a manner that does not cause danger or constitutes a nuisance to any person or property, clear and open away from buildings, overhead wires and tree branches and away from livestock, animal shelter or wildlife sanctuary or conservation area
Must be away from a highway, road allowance, public beach, or park
200 metres clear of any facility that is designated as a hospital, care facility, educational institute, church or assembly building

Fireworks are suspended during a County Wide Fire Ban.

Any persons discharging, setting or causing to be set any device considered a firework shall be responsible for any damage to property or injury to persons, and be liable for all costs incurred by the Fire Department, including investigating complaints. See our User Fees page for details.

Permits for Display Fireworks

Only persons who hold a valid Display Supervisor certificate, issued by the Explosives Regulatory Division (ERO) of Natural Resources Canada are eligible to apply for a permit to set off Display Fireworks or Pyrotechnic Special Effects.
A permit may be issued by the Fire Chief or designate on any land if the regulation requirements listed in section 5 of the Act are met.
An application package as prescribed under the Act must be submitted to the Fire Chief or designate, together with the application fee paid in full as set out in the Municipal Fees By-law as may be amended from time to time.
The application package shall contain at a minimum, the following requirements as found in the Natural Resources Canada (NRCAN) Fireworks Display Manual:
- Section 3.7 Basic requirements for event approval
- Section 3.8 Site plan, event description and special circumstances
- Section 3.10 Display fireworks event approval form
The completed application must be submitted no less than thirty (30) business days prior to the proposed event.
Filed with the application form, the applicant shall provide a Certificate of Liability Insurance certifying the applicant is insured for the permit, against general liability and property damage claims, in the minimum amount of Five Million Dollars ($5,000,000.00) inclusive for any one occurrence. The certificate shall name The Corporation of the Township of Minden Hills, as an additional insured, for events occurring on Township property. The policy shall be endorsed to provide no alteration, cancellation or be allowed to lapse without ten (10) days' prior written notice to the Corporation.
Notwithstanding the foregoing sections, the Fire Chief or designate may require any additional information of the applicant to ensure the public's safety and may impose additional conditions on the issuance of a Permit as they deem advisable in the particular circumstances of the application.
The fireworks shall only be set off by a person currently certified as a Fireworks Supervisor Level I or Level II by the Explosion Regulatory Division of the Natural Resources of Canada.
The Fireworks shall only be set off on the day or days specified by the Permit.
The Permit may be suspended or revoked by the Fire Chief or designate if the conditions of the permit are not being met or it would be unsafe to allow the Public Fireworks Display.
Property damage or injury as a result of Display Fireworks shall be the responsibility of the person setting off the Fireworks.

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