Permits

Apply for a Burning Permit

• How to Apply and Pay

  Complete the 2024 Burn Permit Application and email it to: fire@penticton.ca. If applying for a FireSmart Permit, include your completed site plan along with the application.

  The application will be reviewed for approval by Fire Department personnel. Please remember to sign it.

  Once approved, the application will be returned to you at the email address provided, and will indicate a Confirmation [Permit] No. This number will be required to make your payment either online (credit card) or at City Hall (cash, cheque, debit).

  • If paying in person at City Hall, you will need to take the printed copy of your permit with you to City Hall (the one indicating the Confirmation [Permit] No.) It will be imprinted with a cashier's receipt, which validates your permit.
  • Online payments using your credit card can be made at the City's online payment site: Online.penticton.ca click MyPayments then select Fire Burn Permits from the options list.

  If your application requires a site inspection prior to approval, you will be contacted to arrange a date and time.

  The Burn Permit is not valid without proof of payment.

  If you are unable to download the application, please email: fire@penticton.ca or call: 250-490-2300 to request a permit application.                                                          

  Please note:

  • Burning is prohibited April 15 to October 15.
  • Call for Venting Index before burning at 250-490-4125 and to give your permit number.
  • Permit prices are in accordance with the Fees & Charges Bylaw 2014-07 (see Appendix 9).

  The Fire Chief may refuse to issue or may cancel a Burning Permit that is likely to be hazardous or create a nuisance. Watch for wind speed and smoke having a negative impact on nearby residences.

Outdoor Burning

• Alternatives to Burning

  Penticton, along with other Okanagan municipalities and regional districts, is dedicated to maintaining and improving the valley's air quality. Open burning should be the last option considered when removing vegetative waste and the following alternatives should be considered.

  • Chipping, grinding and flail mowing: Use chips as mulch in orchards and vineyards to increase soil moisture retention and control weeds. On-site wood waste chipping is available through area contractors.
  • Curbside Yard Waste pick-up: For a collection calendar and other information, visit our Garbage, Recycling and Yard Waste page.
  • Campbell Mountain Landfill: There is no charge to take prunings and yard waste to the landfill for loads weighing less than 500 kg.
• Important Information about Burn Piles

  Please read the following guidelines involving burn piles.

  • Ensure the burn pile is no more than 6m in diameter. (Can you control the fire with your equipment and water source?)
  • Minimum of 30m away from property lines and combustible materials.
  • Volume to be burned is no greater than 10 cubic metres per hectare.
  • Every reasonable alternative for reducing, reusing or recycling has been pursued to minimize the amount of materials to be burned.
  • Materials to be burned must originate from the property where the burning is taking place.
  • Prohibited burning materials cannot be burned.
  • Burning permission is granted at the discretion of the Fire Chief and is only permitted on days when the Venting Index is 54 or greater.
  • All burning shall be conducted and concluded between dawn and dusk of the same day.
  • A competent adult person will oversee the fire at all times while it is burning or smouldering and shall have sufficient appliances and Equipment in order to prevent the fire from burning out of control or causing damage or becoming dangerous.

  For complete details check the Fire & Life Safety Bylaw.

Permit Conditions

• Burning Permit Conditions

  • Every reasonable alternative for reducing, reusing or recycling has been pursued to minimize the amount of materials to be burned.
  • Vegetative debris to be burned must be "seasoned" to a moisture content not greater than 30%, piled for at least 4 months, or originating from standing dead timber. 
  • Permit holders must call for the Venting Index (250-490-4125) prior to burning. Burning permission is granted at the discretion of the Fire Chief and is only permitted on days when the Venting Index is 55 or greater. 
  • The open burning is on land of 1 hectare (2.2 acres) or greater.
  • Prohibited burning materials cannot be burned. This includes garden refuse such as shrubs, prunings from non-fruit bearing trees, plants, leaves, grass and grass cuttings.
  • The material to be open burned is on the parcel of land from which it originated. 
  • Prohibited burning materials cannot be burned. 
  • All burning shall be conducted and concluded between 1 hour after sunrise ending 4 pm or 2 hours before sunset of the same day, unless so noted. 
  • Vegetative debris must be piled and seasoned. Piles of a dimension having largest horizontal is less than 2 times the vertical.
  • A competent adult person will oversee the fire at all times while it is burning or smouldering and shall have sufficient appliances and equipment in order to prevent the fire from burning out of control or causing damage or becoming dangerous.
  • No burning within 100m of buildings and businesses or 500m of property line of schools, hospitals or community care facilities. 
  • Burn periods: maximum of 12 days in a calendar year and not more than 6 in a calendar month. 
  • The Fire Chief may refuse to issue or may cancel a burning permit, the use of which, the the Fire Chief's opinion would likely be hazardous or create a nuisance; (watch wind speed and smoke having a negative impact on nearby residences).
  • The City may recover a debt from the Owner or Occupier of the land the cost and expenses of, and incidental to, the taking of any measures, if the Fire Chief is satisfied on reasonable and probable grounds that the provisions of the City of Penticton Fire and Life Safety Bylaw 2004-57 have not been complied with.
• Prohibited Burning Materials

  In accordance with the Fire and Life Safety Bylaw, prohibited burning materials means the burning of domestic, commercial, demolition, renovation and construction waste materials including waste materials listed in the Open Burning Smoke Control Regulation of the Waste Management Act R.S.B.C. 1996 c. 482 and amendments, including:

  • animal carcasses and waste from animal slaughtering
  • asphalt or asphalt products
  • batteries
  • biomedical waste
  • carpets
  • construction waste other than lumber that has not been treated with wood preservatives or other chemicals and is not coated with paint, varnish, oil or other finishing material
  • demolition waste
  • drywall
  • domestic waste
  • electrical wire
  • fibreglass and other fibre-reinforced polymers
  • fuel and lubricant containers
  • furniture and appliances
  • hazardous waste
  • manure
  • paint and varnish
  • plastics
  • polystyrene foam
  • railway ties
  • rubber
  • tar paper
  • tires
  • treated or painted wood products
  • used oil

   

Types of Burning Permits

• Open Air Burning Permit

  Open Air Burning Permits are available for properties within City limits and the West Bench (RDOS) for the purpose of burning vegetative debris. Properties must be a minimum of 1ha (2.2 acres) and meet certain conditions in accordance with Section 9.04 of the City’s Fire and Life Safety Bylaw 2004-57 and in conjunction with the Ministry of Environment’s Open Burning Smoke Control Regulation.

  Even with a valid permit, open burning is prohibited April 15 to October 15.

  The cost of an Open Air Burning Permit is $56.00 + GST and a site inspection (if required) is $56.00 + GST. 

  For complete details, see the Fire & Life Safety Bylaw.

• FireSmart Burning Permit

  The purpose of the FireSmart Burning Permit is to promote the removal of fuel from wildland and urban interface properties. The permit is issued for a specific period and for a specific site.

  There is no cost for the permit or site inspection. After applying for the permit, a site inspection will be completed by the Fire Department’s Fire Prevention Division. If the permit is approved, burning can occur during the period specified.

• Special Burning Permit

  A Special Burning Permit is required for the burning of agricultural trees and stumps (land clearing). Before land clearing begins, please contact us to arrange for a site inspection.

  The Special Burning Permit costs $56.00 + GST and a site inspection fee of $56.00 + GST.

Other Permits

• Mobile Vending Permits

  Mobile food vendors who wish to conduct business in Penticton must have their vehicle inspected by the Penticton Fire Department. Learn more on our Mobile Vending Permits page.

• Storage Tank Permits

  Permits for the installation and removal of underground storage tanks are available from the Penticton Fire Department. Visit our Storage Tank Permits page to learn more.

• Low Hazard Fire Works Permits

  In accordance with the Fire and Life Safety Bylaw, "no person shall manufacture, discharge, sell or dispose of any Fireworks within the City, except pursuant to Permit issued by the Fire Chief."

  Low Hazard Fire Works Permits will not be issued until further notice. 

   

   

• High Hazard Fire Works Permits

  A permit is required to discharge "High Hazard" fireworks for public display and for specific events or occasions.

  Email fire@penticton.ca or call 250-490-2300 for more information.

References

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