As summer heats up, B.C. officials have announced campfires will be prohibited province-wide beginning at noon Friday, July 12.
The notice came Tuesday through the BC Wildfire Service, which said the action came after considering the increased risk of new wildfire starts from “current and forecast” weather conditions.
The campfire ban is comprehensive, according to officials, prohibiting fires of all sizes on both public and private land –– an effort to prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety as temperatures rise province-wide.
BC Ferries also announced Tuesday it had developed a new process, in partnership with the BC Wildfire Service, for streamlining the booking process and offering expedited loading and priority boarding for those aiding wildfire response, both here in B.C. and across the country.
This year’s campfire prohibition comes more than a month later than a similar ban last year, when campfires joined the list of already prohibited burning activities June 8, 2023.
In addition to campfires and open burning, fireworks, sky lanterns, burn barrels or burn cages, binary exploding targets, air curtain burners, Tiki (and similar) torches and chimineas are also prohibited. This prohibition does not include the use of stoves used outdoors for “cooking, heat or ambiance,” according to wildfire regulations, which burn charcoal briquettes, liquid or gaseous fuel, and have a flame height less than 15 cm tall.
Anyone who lights, fuels or uses an open fire when a fire prohibition is in place or fails to comply with an open fire prohibition may be issued a ticket for $1,150 or, if convicted in court, be 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 subject to a penalty of up to $100,000 and ordered to pay all firefighting and associated costs, according to the Coastal Fire Centre.
For the latest information on current wildfire activity, burning restrictions, road closures and air quality advisories, visit bcwildfire.ca. The saltspringfire.com website has more local information, including a “cheat sheet” describing restrictions related to high-risk activities such as chainsawing and mechanical land clearing.