FEATURE
Burning of tyres, paint, solvent residues, coated wire and treated timbers is prohibited.
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Open Burning in the Blue Mountains
Open burning (sometimes referred to as backyard burning or pile burning) is defined as the act of burning anything in the open air, and is regulated in the State of New South Wales by the Protection of the Environment Operations (Clean Air) Regulation 2002.
The intention of the Regulation is solely to manage the air pollution issues associated with burning, with a view to protecting local and regional air quality, local amenity and human health.
The Regulation allows Council to approve the burning of dead vegetation in the Blue Mountains area, as well as providing some discretion as to the areas in which it allows burning. However, for health and air quality reasons the regulation strictly prohibits the burning of certain items such as:
- Tyres
- Paint and paint containers
- Solvent residues and containers
- Coated wire
- Treated timbers
Two approval mechanisms apply for burning within the Blue Mountains local government area. A standing approval has been issued to a certain class of person, and an approval by application process exists for all other residents.
The 'class of person' approval relates to the following areas:
- Land zoned Rural Conservation. This covers all privately owned land in Mount Wilson, Mount Irvine, Mount Tomah, and Megalong Valley, as well as some land within Sun Valley;
- Land zoned Bushland Conservation - No Subdivision. This covers a widely distributed range of properties that are largely on the urban fringes of the City; and
- The Pulpit Hill precinct. This covers properties that front Pulpit Hill Road, Explorers Road, Saywell Road and Nellies Glen Road Katoomba.
Residents in these areas do not need to apply to council every time they wish to burn a pile of dead vegetation on their property, however, they must comply with a number of strict conditions that aim to minimise smoke impacts and ensure the fire is managed safely. The approval document, including the conditions that must be followed is available from the downloads section of this page.
For residents who own or manage land outside of these areas, approval will only be granted subject to application and assessment of the burning proposal. The application process has been maintained for all other properties, as burning close to or within built up areas has significant potential to cause adverse smoke impacts on the community. The application form can be downloaded, at right; or over the counter at Council offices. Assessment of applications can take up to ten working days, so please be patient and take assessment time into account when proposing a date for the fire.
All approved burning activities must be undertaken in accordance with the Rural Fire Service / NSW Fire Brigades document Standards for Pile Burning. This document can be downloaded, at right; or from the Rural Fire Service website (www.rfs.nsw.gov.au).
It should be noted that approvals relating to open burning are not intended to apply to bush fire hazard reduction works, and do not limit a resident's ability to undertake genuine hazard reduction activities.
Where a resident wishes to undertake burning for bush fire hazard reduction purposes, Council strongly recommends applying for a Bush Fire Hazard Reduction Certificate. Such applications are subject to different assessment criteria and approval conditions to those applied to open burning. Click here for more information on Bush Fire Hazard Reduction Certificates.