The following rules govern all burning, whether or not a written permit is required.

• Neverleaveanoutdoorfireunattended• TheFireMarshal’sOfficemaytemporarilypro-

hibitanyand/oralloutdoorfireswhenatmo-sphericconditionsorlocalcircumstancesmakefireshazardous

• Burningisnotpermittedwhenprevailingwindsare predicted to be, or are, in excess of 15milesperhour

• No burning is permitted when the NationalWeatherServiceissuesaRed Flag WarningoraFire Weather Watch

• Noburningispermittedduringanairpollutionepisode,suchasanairpollutionalert,warning,oremergencydeclaredbyproperauthorities

• Noburningispermittedwhenthereisfog,rain,oracloudbasethat isdiffusedor illdefined.Youalsomustwaitatleastonedayfollowingthepassageofacoldfrontbeforeburning

• Noburningof solidwasteorhouseholdgar-bageisallowed

• Noburningofanymaterialsthatemitaheavydarksmoke,suchasrubberproducts,oils,roof-ingmaterial,petroleumbasedproducts,etc.

• No burning when smoke presents a healthhazard to persons in the vicinity of the fire.TheFireMarshal’sOfficeisauthorizedtobanoutdoorburninginalimitedgeographicalareaupon receipt of medical certification from aresidentiftheyhaveamedicalconditionthatisadverselyaffectedbysmoke

• Noburningshallbeconductedwithin20feetof flammable, combustible, or explosive ma-terials unless otherwise specified by the FireMarshal’sOffice

• Noburningon Sundays or nights.Compliantbonfires, cooking fires, and recreational firesin chimneas and outdoor fireplaces may beburned on Sunday and at night provided allothercriteriaandrestrictionsareapplied

Safe Burning Practices

gwinnettcountyDepartment of Fire and

Emergency Services

Outdoor and Open Burning

gwinnettcountyFire and Emergency Services408HurricaneShoalsRoad,NE

Lawrenceville,GA30046Phone:678.518.4980

BurnInformationLine:678.518.4979E-mail:firemarshal@gwinnettcounty.com

www.gwinnettfiremarshal.com03.12

Debris Burning is the burning of limbs, leaves, and natural vegetation

ThisinformationisderivedfromtheGwinnettCountyFirePreventionandProtectionOrdinance

ArticleIISection46-54

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) imposes a

total ban on outdoor burning in Gwinnett County annually from

May 1 to September 30.

BurnInformationLine678.518.4979

www.gwinnettfiremarshal.com

TheBurnInformationlineandwebsiteareupdateddailyby9:00am

Ifyoususpectsomeoneisimproperlyburningpleasereportitbycalling

770.513.5700

Outdoor Burning Ordinance Restrictions

Fires Allowed Without a Written Permit

Recreational fires in commercially available Chim-ineas or outdoor fireplaces: • Chimineasoroutdoorfireplacesshallbeusedaccordingtotheirintendeduse,andtheman-ufacturer’srecommendations

• ChimineasoroutdoorfireplacesshallhaveaChimineas, screen, or other approvedmeth-odtoarrestsparks.Untreatedwood,lumber,manufacturedfirelogs,orcharcoalshallbetheonly substances permitted to be burned inChimineasoroutdoorfireplaces

• Chimineasoroutdoorfireplacesshallnotbeoperated inside structures, on combustiblesurfacesorbalconies,orwithin25'ofcombus-tibleconstruction

• Chimineasoroutdoorfireplacesshallhaveanon-combustiblesurfaceunderneathtocatchsparks

How to extinguish your outdoor fire:• Allow the natural vegetation to burn com-pletelytoash

• Pour lotsofwateronthefireanddrownallembers,notjusttheredones

• Stirthefireashesandemberswithashovel• Scrapethesticksandlogstoremoveanyem-bers

• Stirandmakesureeverythingiswet.Allmate-rialsshouldbecoldtothetouch

• Ifyoudonothavewater,usedirt.Mixenoughdirt or sand with the embers and continueaddingandstirringuntilallmaterialiscool

Fires Requiring Written Permits

The following types of fires require a written permit

Pit Fires:• ThesefiresarepermittedforthepurposeoflandclearingandarebypermitonlythroughGwinnettCountyFirePlanReview

• No pit burning shall commence prior to aninspection of the site and the burn pit by arepresentativeoftheFireMarshal’sOffice

• Upon approval, the permits are valid for 30days.Permitsmaybeextendedforincrementsof15dayperiodswithoutadditionalfees,withamaximumoftwoextensions

Bonfires:• Nopersonshallkindleormaintainanybonfireorauthorizeanysuchfireunlessthelocationisnolessthan50'fromstructurewithasizenottoexceedfourcubicfeetofcombustiblematerialsand100'fromastructurewithasizenottoexceedfivecubic feetofcombustiblematerials

• Forpurposesofclarification,bonfiresshallbelimitedtoactivitiessponsoredbycivic,educa-tional,religious,orothergroupsforthepur-poseofcelebration,etc.Anexamplewouldbeahighschoolpeprally

• Bonfires shall be constantly attended by acompetent person until the fire is extin-guished.The attendant must have a gardenhose connected to awater supply or otherfireextinguishingequipmentcapableofextin-guishingthefirereadilyavailableforuse

Fires Allowed Without a Written Permit

Thefollowingtypesoffiresdonotrequireawrit-tenpermit butmust follow theoutdoor burningordinancerestrictions.

The burning of leaves, limbs, and natural vegeta-tion that may fall on one’s property• Thelocationforopenburningofnaturalvege-tationshallnotbelessthan50'fromanystruc-tureandnotlessthan25'fromapropertyline.Provisions shall bemade toprevent thefirefromspreadingtowithin50'ofanystructureand25'fromapropertyline

• Firesshouldbeasizethatiseasilycontrolledundertheconditionsandwiththeresourcesavailableontheproperty

Fires for the purpose of keeping warm• Warming fires must be contained within ametalbarrelof55galloncapacityorless

• Untreatedwoodorlumberaretheonlyma-terialsorsubstancespermittedtobeburned

• Noon-groundwarmingfiresarepermitted• Thecontainerforthewarmingfirecannotbelessthan50'fromanystructure

• Theoutsidetemperatureshallbe50ͦForless

Fires for the purpose of cooking food for human consumption• Charcoal,wood,andgasgrillsandotheropenflamecookingdevices shall notbeoperatedon combustible balconies or within 10' ofcombustibleconstructionwith theexceptionofoneandtwofamilydwellings

• LPgasgrillsandburnershavinganLPgascon-tainerwithawatercapacitygreater than2.5pounds(1poundLPgascapacity)shallnotbelocated on combustible balconies or within10'ofcombustibleconstructionwiththeex-ceptionofoneandtwofamilydwellings

• Open fires used for cooking must be morethan50'fromanystructureandprovisionsshallbemadetopreventthefirefromspreading

Remember:Donot bury thefire.Thefirewill continue to smolder. Tree roots couldcatch on fire which will eventually surfaceandstartawildfire.Ifit’stoohottotouch,it’stoohottoleave!