Forest Fire Protection Regulations
made under Section 40 of the
Forests Act
R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 179
O.I.C. 2019-248 (effective September 17, 2019), N.S. Reg. 135/2019
Table of Contents
Please note: this table of contents is provided for convenience of reference and does not form part of the regulations.
Click here to go to the text of the regulations.
Citation
Definitions
Fire season prescribed
Domestic burning defined
Domestic burning permit for each county announced
Burn day authorized burning
Restricted burn day authorized burning
Non-burn day
Industrial burning defined
Industrial burning permit
Municipal landfill sites
Terms and conditions of permit to burn mandatory
Suspended or cancelled permit to burn
Fire fighting equipment based on number of persons employed at site
Fire fighting equipment for Class 1 and Class 2 machinery
Fire fighting equipment available and in working order
Operating power saw or clearing saw on forest lands during fire season
Portion of fine paid for information
Citation
1 These regulations may be cited as the Forest Fire Protection Regulations.
Definitions
2 (1) In the Act and these regulations,
“burn” means to set, start, kindle, ignite or maintain a fire;
“fire” means combustion or burning, in which substances combine chemically with
oxygen from the air and typically give out bright light and heat.
(2) In these regulations,
“ABC fire extinguisher” means an ABC fire extinguisher of a type approved by the
Canadian Standards Association or the Underwriters Laboratories of Canada;
“Act” means the Forests Act;
“campfire” means an open fire that burns no larger than 0.5 m in diameter and is
intended for recreation, but does not include a fire set for survival;
“designated” means designated under Section 5;
“domestic burning” means domestic burning as defined in Section 4;
“domestic burning permit” means a permit to burn in the form of a public
announcement in accordance with Section 5 that authorizes domestic burning;
“extinguished” means to fully put out a fire such that there is no bright light, heat
or smoke and the embers are cool to the touch throughout with no chance of
reigniting;
“flammable debris” means waste material that is at risk of igniting or spreading
fire, including loose paper, cured grass and logging slash;
“forest protection area” means in the woods or within 1000 ft (305 m) of the
woods, as specified in the Act;
“industrial burning permit” means a permit to burn that authorizes the holder to
carry out industrial burning as defined in Section 9;
“online mapping tool” means an online map of the Province on the Department’s
Forest Protection website that depicts each county and the domestic burning permit
issued for each county;
“operation or activity” means any work carried out and includes a construction
project, industrial project or forestry operation;
“permit to burn” means a permit issued under the Act and these regulations that
authorizes a person to carry out domestic burning or industrial burning.
Fire season prescribed
3 Except as otherwise modified by the Minister under subsection 23(2) of the Act, the
period from March 15 to October 15, both dates inclusive, is prescribed as the fire
season for all counties in the Province.
Domestic burning defined
4 In these regulations, “domestic burning” means burning, for no remuneration, tree limbs,
leaves, brush or cut grass that meets any of the following criteria:
(a) the material being burned is in no more than 2 piles, each of which is no
wider than 3 m in diameter and no taller than 2 m;
(b) it is a campfire;
(c) it is carried out while burning for blueberry crops within an area smaller
than or equal to 2 ha.
Domestic burning permit for each county announced
5 (1) Each day during a fire season, the Minister or a person delegated by the Minister
must publicly announce the domestic burning permitted in each county of the
Province, by designating the day as 1 of the following:
(a) burn day;
(b) restricted burn day;
(c) non-burn day.
(2) A day designated under subsection (1) means the 18-hour period between 2 p.m. of
that day to 8 a.m. on the following day unless otherwise authorized by the Minister
or a person designated by the Minister.
(3) A public announcement required by subsection (1) must be published on the online
mapping tool and be available by telephone through the Department’s toll-free
phone number.
Burn day authorized burning
6 In addition to any restrictions or conditions in Section 27 of the Act, on a designated
burn day, domestic burning is permitted in the forest protection area only if all of the
following conditions are met:
(a) piles of material to be burned are at least 10 m apart;
(b) the fire is extinguished by 8 a.m. on the morning following the ignition of
the fire.
Restricted burn day authorized burning
7 In addition to any restrictions or conditions in Section 27 of the Act, on a designated
restricted burn day, domestic burning is permitted in the forest protection area only if all
of the following conditions are met:
(a) piles of material to be burned are at least 10 m apart;
(b) burning occurs only during the restricted time period specified in the
domestic burning permit public announcement.
Non-burn day
8 (1) On a designated non-burn day, there is no permit to burn issued.
(2) Despite subsection (1), a person may carry out domestic burning on a designated
non-burn day if the local Area Manager of the Department determines that it is safe
and reasonable to carry out burning for a special event and grants express written
permission to do so.
Industrial burning defined
9 In these regulations, “industrial burning” means burning that meets any of the following
criteria:
(a) it is carried out by a person for remuneration;
(b) it is carried out for land-clearing or agricultural purposes, including burning
for blueberries within an area larger than 2 ha;
(c) the material being burned is in more than 2 piles of any size;
(d) the material being burned is wider than 3 m in diameter or taller than 2 m;
(e) the fire is not extinguished by 8:00 a.m. of the morning following the
ignition of the fire.
Industrial burning permit
10 (1) The fee for an industrial burning permit is $62.30, inclusive of any applicable
taxes.
(2) A person authorized or designated by the Minister to issue an industrial burning
permit must complete any returns that the Minister directs, and must remit to the
Minister all money received from the sale of industrial burning permits less any
amount allowed by the Minister by way of commission.
Municipal landfill sites
11 (1) An industrial burning permit may be issued to a municipality that operates a
municipal land fill site, for the purpose of operating the landfill site, for a period of
time equivalent to the fire season for the county where the landfill site is located.
(2) Despite subsection (1) and in addition to any other conditions that may be
imposed, an industrial burning permit issued under subsection (1) may contain any
conditions respecting suspension or cancellation of the permit that the permit issuer
considers necessary for the adequate protection from and control of forest fires.
Terms and conditions of permit to burn mandatory
12 Any terms and conditions specified for a permit to burn are part of the permit and a
person must comply with the terms and conditions contained in their permit.
Suspended or cancelled permit to burn
13 (1) In subsection 23(8) of the Act,
“fire permit” means a permit to burn;
“permit holder” includes a person acting on that person’s behalf.
(2) A permit holder must surrender to the Department, on request, any permit to burn
issued to them that has been suspended or cancelled.
Fire fighting equipment based on number of persons employed at site
14 Except where the Department has prescribed or approved specific alternatives, the fire
fighting equipment required to be provided and maintained under subsection 27(4) of the
Act by a person in charge of an operation or activity conducted in the forest protection
area during the fire season, based on the number of persons employed at the site of the
operation, is as follows:
Required equipment for fire fighting**
|
Total number of persons employed at
site of operations*
|
1-2
|
3-5
|
6-10
|
11-20
|
21+
|
Any combination of axe, Pulaski or shovels
|
2
|
3
|
6
|
10
|
13
|
Back tanks or bags with pump and nozzle
|
1
|
2
|
4
|
5
|
7
|
*The total number includes individuals operating heavy equipment and machinery.
|
**This total does not include the equipment affixed to Class I or Class II machines.
|
Fire fighting equipment for Class 1 and Class 2 machinery
15 (1) In this Section,
“Class 1 machine” means a farm tractor, a skidder, a forwarder, a roadside slasher,
a roadside delimber, a loader, a wood transporting vehicle, road construction
equipment, a welding vehicle or an equipment servicing vehicle;
“Class 1 operation” means an operation or activity conducted during the fire season
in the forest protection area in which a Class 1 machine is used;
“Class 2 machine” means a chipper, a feller buncher, a wood harvester or a wood
processor;
“Class 2 operation” means an operation or activity conducted during the fire season
in the forest protection area in which a Class 2 machine is used.
(2) A person in charge of Class 1 operation or a Class 2 operation must ensure that all
of the following equipment is securely affixed to the machines used in the
operation as set out in the following table:
Class of machine
|
Equipment to be affixed to machine
|
Class 1
|
1 5-lb (2.25 kg) ABC fire extinguisher, fully charged and
equipped with pressure gauges
OR
2 2.5-lb (1.13 kg) ABC fire extinguishers, fully charged
and equipped with pressure gauges
|
Class 2, equipped
with on-board
suppression system
|
•
|
1 10-lb (4.54 kg) ABC fire extinguisher, fully
charged and equipped with pressure gauges
OR
2 5-lb (2.25 kg) ABC fire extinguishers, fully
charged and equipped with pressure gauges
|
•
|
1 back tank pump unit containing no less than 18 L
of water
OR
an additional 10-lb (4.54 kg) ABC fire
extinguisher, fully charged and equipped with
pressure gauges
|
Class 2, not
equipped with on-board suppression
system
|
•
|
1 20-lb (9 kg) ABC fire extinguisher, fully charged
and equipped with pressure gauges
OR
2 10-lb (4.54 kg) ABC fire extinguishers, fully
charged and equipped with pressure gauges
|
•
|
1 back tank pump unit containing no less than 18 L
of water
OR
an additional 20-lb (9 kg) ABC fire extinguisher,
fully charged and equipped with pressure gauges
|
(3) In addition to the requirements of subsection (2), every person in charge of a Class
2 operation must have a 2-way communication system available at the operations
site.
Fire fighting equipment available and in working order
16 A person in charge of an operation or activity conducted in the forest protection area
during the fire season must ensure that all fire fighting equipment required to be kept at
the site of the operations is, at all times,
(a) readily available; and
(b) kept in proper working order.
Operating power saw or clearing saw on forest lands during fire season
17 (1) A person must not operate a power saw or clearing saw in the forest protection
area during the fire season unless the power saw is equipped with an exhaust
muffler in functional condition and the adequate spark arresting device required by
subsection 27(4) of the Act.
(2) A person who operates a power saw or clearing saw in the forest protection area
during the fire season must keep an ABC fire extinguisher containing not less than
0.5 lb. (0.225 kg) of dry chemical at the site where the person refuels the power
saw.
Portion of fine paid for information
18 (1) If a complaint is laid and information provided by a person other than a
conservation officer, the Minister may pay the complainant an amount of up to 1/2
of any fine collected for a prosecution for a violation of the Act or the regulations
resulting from the complaint and information.
(2) If a complaint is laid by a conservation officer on information provided by another
person other than a conservation officer, the Minister may pay the person who
provided the information an amount of up to 1/4 of any fine collected for a
prosecution for a violation of the Act or the regulations resulting from the
information.
The
following regulations are not yet in force and are not included in the current consolidation: