A. Purpose. This section is intended to promote the public health, safety and welfare, and to safeguard the health, comfort, living conditions, safety and welfare of the citizens of the Village of Rochester due to the air pollution and fire hazards of open burning, outdoor burning and refuse burning.
B. Applicability. This section applies to all outdoor burning and refuse burning within the Village of Rochester.
1. This section does not apply to grilling or cooking using charcoal, wood, propane or natural gas in cooking or grilling appliances.
2. This section does not apply to burning in a stove, furnace, fireplace or other heating device within a building used for human or animal habitation unless the material being burned includes refuse as defined in subsection D of this section.
3. This section does not apply to the use of propane, acetylene, natural gas, gasoline or kerosene in a device intended for heating, construction or maintenance activities.
C. Severability. Should any portion of this section be declared unconstitutional or invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of this section shall not be affected.
D. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings set forth.
"Campfire" means a small outdoor fire intended for recreation or cooking not including a fire intended for disposal of waste wood or refuse.
"Clean Wood" means natural wood which has not been painted, varnished or coated with a similar material, has not been pressure treated with preservatives and does not contain resins or glues as in plywood or other composite wood products.
“Confidential Papers” means printed material containing personal identification or financial information that the owner wishes to destroy.
"Fire Chief" means the Chief of the Fire Company contracted for fire and rescue service by the Village pursuant to section 3-1 of this Municipal Code, or other person authorized by that Fire Chief.
"Open Burning" means kindling or maintaining a fire where the products of combustion are emitted directly into the ambient air without passing through a stack or a chimney.
"Outdoor Burning" means open burning or burning in an outdoor wood-fired furnace.
"Any Outdoor Fired Furnace" means a wood-fired or other material-fired furnace, stove or boiler that is not located within a building intended for habitation by humans or domestic animals.
"Refuse" means any waste material except clean wood.
E. General prohibition on outdoor burning and refuse burning. Open burning, outdoor burning and refuse burning are prohibited in the Village of Rochester unless the burning is specifically permitted by this section.
F. Materials that may not be burned. Unless a specific written approval has been obtained from the Department of Natural Resources, the following materials may not be burned in an open fire, incinerator, burn barrel, furnace, stove or any other indoor or outdoor incineration or heating device:
1. Rubbish or garbage including but not limited to food wastes, food wraps, packaging, animal carcasses, paint or painted materials, furniture, composite shingles, construction or demolition debris or other household or business wastes.
2. Waste oil or other oily wastes except used oil burned in a heating device for energy recovery subject to the restrictions in Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 590.
3. Asphalt and products containing asphalt.
4. Treated or painted wood including but not limited to plywood, composite wood products or other wood products that are painted, varnished or treated with preservatives.
5. Any plastic material including but not limited to nylon, PVC, ABS, polystyrene or urethane foam, and synthetic fabrics, plastic films and plastic containers.
6. Rubber including tires and synthetic rubber-like products.
7. Newspaper, corrugated cardboard, container board, office paper and other materials that must be recycled in accordance with the recycling ordinance except as provided in subsection K. of this section.
G. Open burning of leaves, brush, clean wood and other vegetative debris. Open burning of leaves, weeds, brush, stumps, clean wood other vegetative debris is allowed only in accordance with the following provisions:
1. All allowed open burning shall be conducted in a safe nuisance free manner, when wind and weather conditions are such as to minimize adverse effects and not create a health hazard or a visibility hazard on roadways, railroads or airfields. Open burning shall be conducted in conformance with all local and state fire protection regulations.
2. Except for barbecue, gas and charcoal grills, no open burning shall be undertaken during periods when either the Fire Chief or the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has issued a burning ban applicable to the area.
3. Open burning shall be conducted only on the property on which the materials were generated or at a facility approved by and in accordance with provisions established by the Department of Natural Resources and the Fire Chief.
4. Unless explicitly allowed elsewhere in this section, a commercial enterprise other than an agricultural or silvicultural operation may open burn only at a facility approved by and in accordance with provisions established by the Department of Natural Resources and the Fire Chief.
5. Open burning of weeds or brush on agricultural lands including fires for cropland management, insect control and rodent control is allowed if dense smoke is not created and if conducted in accordance with other applicable provisions of this section, provided however that such burning may begin at 8:00 a.m. The Racine County Sheriff’s Department shall be notified in advance of the agricultural burning. The earlier start time allowed in this subsection does not apply to refuse burning, burning in burn barrels, or any other type of burning – it applies only to burning of vegetation in agricultural fields.
6. Fires set for forest, prairie or wildlife habitat management are allowed with the approval of the Department of Natural Resources.
7. Outdoor campfires and small bonfires for cooking, ceremonies or recreation are allowed provided that the fire is confined by a control device or structure such as a barrel, fire ring, or fire pit. Bonfires are allowed only if approved by and in accordance with provisions established by the Fire Chief.
8. In emergency situations such as natural disasters burning that would otherwise be prohibited is allowed if specifically approved by the Department of Natural Resources.
9. Open burning under this section shall only be conducted at a location no less than 20 feet from a property line or structure.
10. Except for campfires and permitted bonfires, open burning shall only be conducted between 8:00 a.m. 1 and 7:00 p.m. No person shall kindle or start an open fire or a fire in a container as described herein between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m., and such fire must be extinguished by 8:00 p.m. Campfires and permitted bonfires that are strictly for recreational purposes may be kindled or started between 7:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. and must be extinguished by 1:00 a.m.
11. Open burning shall be constantly attended and supervised by a competent person of at least 18 years of age until the fire is extinguished and is cold. The person shall have readily available for use such fire extinguishing equipment as may be necessary for the total control of the fire.
12. No materials may be burned within five feet of any street, curb, gutter or sidewalk or on the ice of a lake, pond, stream or waterbody.
13. Except for barbecue, gas and charcoal grills, no burning shall be undertaken within 20 feet from any combustible material, combustible wall or partition, exterior window opening, exit access or exit unless authorized by the Fire Chief.
14. No open burning may be conducted on days when the Department of Natural Resources has declared an Air Quality Watch or Air Quality Advisory for ozone or fine particle pollution applicable to the Village of Rochester.
H. Burn barrels. A burn barrel may be used in the Village of Rochester in accordance with the following provisions:
1. The burn barrel shall not be used to burn any of the prohibited materials listed in subsection F of this section and may only be used in accordance with the applicable provisions of subsection G of this section.
2. The burn barrel shall be located at least 50 feet from the nearest building that is not on the same property as the burn barrel.
3. The burn barrel shall have vent holes above the ash line for combustion air and shall be covered with a heavy wire screen.
4. The burn barrel shall not serve a commercial enterprise.
5. No fire in a burn barrel may be started before 8:00 a.m. and all fires in burn barrels must be completely extinguished by 5:00 p.m. 2
I. Outdoor Fired Furnaces. An outdoor fired furnace may be installed and used in the Village of Rochester in accordance with the following provisions:
1. The outdoor furnace shall be installed and used only in an area zoned for agricultural use.
2. The outdoor furnace shall not be used to burn any of the prohibited materials listed in subsection F. of this section.
3. The outdoor furnace shall be located at least 150 feet from the nearest building which is not on the same property as the outdoor fired furnace.
4. The outdoor fired furnace shall have a chimney that extends at least ten feet above the ground surface. The Fire Chief may approve a lesser height on a case-by-case basis if necessary to comply with manufacturer's recommendations and if the smoke from the lower chimney height does not create a nuisance for neighbors.
5. The owner of the outdoor wood-fired furnace shall obtain a building or other appropriate permits from the Village Building inspector.
J. Fire Department Practice Burns. Notwithstanding subsections E. and F. of this section, the contracted Fire Company may burn a standing building if necessary for firefighting practice and if the practice burn complies with the requirements of the Department of Natural Resources.
K. Exemption for Burning Certain Papers.
1. Notwithstanding subsection F.7. of this section, paper and cardboard products may be used as a starter fuel for a fire that is allowed under this section.
2. Small quantities of confidential papers from a residence may be burned if necessary to prevent the theft of financial records, identification or other confidential information.
3. Confidential papers from a commercial enterprise shall be shredded or destroyed in a manner other than burning.
L. Burning Moratorium. When weather conditions warrant, the Fire Chief or the Department of Natural Resources may declare a burning moratorium on all open burning.
M. Liability. A person utilizing or maintaining an outdoor fire shall be responsible for all fire suppression costs and any other liability resulting from damage caused by the fire.
N. Right of Entry and Inspection. The Fire Chief or any authorized officer, agent, employee or representative of the Village of Rochester who presents credentials may inspect any property for the purpose of ascertaining compliance with the provisions of this section. If the owner or occupant of the premises denies access to the property for this purpose, a special inspection warrant may be obtained in accordance with Wis. Stat. s. 66.0119.
O. Penalty. The penalty for violation of any portion of this subsection shall be a forfeiture of not less than $100 or more than $500 plus the cost of prosecution. Penalties are doubled for second and subsequent offenses.
Notes
| 1 | 1 Ordinance #2016-1, Adopted 2-8-16 |
| 2 | 2 Ordinance #2016-6, Adopted 6-27-16 |