(A) No person shall kindle or maintain any bonfire or other outdoor fire or authorize any such fire to be kindled or maintained on any land owned by that person unless the location is more than 50 feet from any structure and adequate provisions are made to prevent fire from spreading to within 50 feet of any structure or other property.
(B) Any person who receives a permit to burn must notify all surrounding property owners who meet the following conditions:
(1) Own property within a 50-foot radius from the location of the proposed burning; and
(2) An occupied dwelling is located on the aforementioned property.
(C) Bonfires or other outdoor fires shall be constantly attended by a competent person until such fire is extinguished. Such person shall have fire extinguishing equipment readily available for use.
(D) The Fire Marshal's Office, Police, or Sheriff's Office may prohibit any or all bonfires and other outdoor fires when atmospheric conditions or local circumstances make such fire hazardous.
(E) Open burning of leaves, tree branches, or yard trimmings originating on the premises of private residences may be burned on such premises, pursuant to the regulations in this section, only if no public curbside pickup service is available.
(F) It shall be unlawful, per G.S. § 106-943, for any person to start or cause to be started any fire or ignite any material in any woodland, as defined by G.S. § 106-904, under the protection of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services or within 500 feet of any such woodland during the hours starting at midnight and ending at 4:00 p.m. without first obtaining a permit from the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Permits may be obtained from forest rangers or other agents authorized by the forest ranger to issue such permits in the county in which the fire is to be started.
(G) No person shall conduct, cause, or permit open burning of household trash, rubber, plastics, chemically treated materials, or other materials which produce excessive or noxious smoke including, but not limited to, tires, railroad ties, chemically treated lumber, composite shingles, tar paper, insulation, composition board, sheetrock, wiring, paint, or paint filters.
(H) If any outdoor burning or smoke from such burning shall cause a nuisance, the Fire Marshal's Office, Police or Sheriffs Office, or responding officer of the Fire Department shall order that such burning be extinguished. Whether an outdoor burning constitutes a nuisance is in the sole discretion of the fire official or law enforcement officer called to the scene.
(I) Any burning permitted under this section shall not be commenced, and shall be immediately terminated, upon declaration of an alert warning or emergency stage of an air pollution episode when proclaimed by the Fire Marshal's Office or any other federal or state regulatory agency.
(Ord. passed 5-3-2021; Ord. passed 2-5-2024)