Windsor Fire and Rescue wants the public to know that open burning is not allowed within the city of Windsor, and you could face a hefty fine if you're caught.
Windsor Fire Chief Jamie Waffle says they've already responded to more than 50 incidents related to improper open burning so far this year.
"Typically the uptick comes in the nice weather. Sometimes we'll see it in the wintertime a little bit, but you see a few nice days, and the calls start to go up," he says.
Under the City of Windsor by-law that took effect in February 2025, anyone found conducting open burns without approval faces a cost recovery charge equivalent to Ministry of Transportation (MTO) rates.
Chief Waffle says it's to recover the costs associated with dispatching emergency vehicles to the scene.
"Ministry of Transportation rates are $570 per vehicle, per piece of apparatus, and a 10 per cent administrative fee, plus HST," he says. "So you're looking at about $700 if you're burning without a burn permit."
City Council approved the measure to impose a cost-recovery charge for cases where a citizen's application has been denied or the citizen has not requested an open-air burning permit at all but still chooses to proceed with burning.
Waffle says open burns are simply not allowed in the city of Windsor.
"There's a fire safety message, for one you don't want to lose control of it. There's the air quality, public health. There's the nuisance control; you have neighbour disputes often; you see neighbour disputes with open burns," he says.
According to the city by-law, open air burning means any fire or burning practice that is conducted outside a building and includes small confined fires and large confined fires, fires in burn barrels, in air curtain incinerators, outdoor recreational fireplaces, prescribed burning, construction site and demolition site fires, campfires, fire pits, fire bowls, sky lanterns, and the use of various types of outdoor fireplaces.
The use of appliances designed for outdoor cooking, such as gas-fired, propane, or charcoal barbecues, is allowed.