CITY OF CIRCLE PINES
COUNTY OF ANOKA
STATE OF MINNESOTA

ORDINANCE NO. 16
SECOND SERIES

AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE CIRCLE PINES CITY CODE BY REPEALING THE CURRENT SECTION 715 - AIR POLLUTION, AND REPLACING IT WITH AN UPDATED OPEN BURNING ORDINANCE.

The City Council of the City of Circle Pines ordains:

Section 1. Open Burning. Chapter 715.01 to 715.05, AIR POLLUTION,
is hereby repealed in its entirety and is replaced with the
following:

715.01 PURPOSE. The purpose of this section is to establish permitted categories of
Open burning events within the City of Circle Pines and provide for a permitting process for open burning, except when such open burning is defined as a Recreational Fire as defined in this section.

715.02 DEFINITIONS. For the purpose of this Section, the terms in this section are
defined as follows:

Subd. 1 Open Burning. "Open Burning" means the burning of any matter if the resultant combustion products are emitted directly to the atmosphere without passing through a stack, duct or chimney, except a Recreational fire as defined herein.

Subd. 2 Recreational Fire. "Recreational Fire" means a fire set with approved starter fluid no more than three (3) feet in height, contained within the border of a "Recreational Fire Site" using dry, clean wood; producing little detectable smoke, odor or soot beyond the property line; conducted with an adult tending the fire at all times; for recreational, ceremonial, food preparation or social purposes; extinguished completely before quitting the occasion; and respecting weather conditions, neighbors, burning bans, and air quality so that nuisance, health or safety hazards will not be created. Mobile cooking devices such as manufactured hibachis, charcoal grills, wood smokers and propane gas devices are not defined as recreational fires. Recreational fires can only burn between 4:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m. and no more than one recreational fire is allowed on any property at one time.

Subd. 3 Recreational Fire Site. "A Recreational Fire Site" means an area of no more than three (3) foot diameter circle (measured from the inside of the fire ring or border completely surrounded by non-combustible and non-smoke or odor-producing material either of natural rock, cement, brick, tile or blocks or ferrous metal only and which area is depressed below ground, on the ground or on a raised bed. Included are permanent outdoor woodburning fireplaces. Burning barrels are not a Recreational Fire Site as defined herein. Recreational Fire Sites shall not be located closer than 25 feet to any structure.

Subd. 4 Starter Fuels. "Starter Fuels" means dry, untreated and unpainted kindling, branches or cardboard, or charcoal fire starter. Paraffin candles and alcohols are permitted as starter fuels and as aids to ignition only. Propane gas torches or other clean gas-burning devices causing minimal pollution must be used to start an Open Burn.

Subd. 5 Wood. "Wood" means dry, clean fuel such as twigs, branches, limbs "presto logs", charcoal, cord wood or untreated dimensional lumber. "Wood" does not include wood that is green, with leaves or needles, rotten, wet oil soaked or treated with preservatives. Clean pallets may be used for recreational fires when cut into three (3) foot lengths.

Subd. 6 Fire Chief, Fire Marshal and Assistant Fire Marshals are the Fire Chief, Fire Marshal and Assistant Fire Marshals of the Centennial Fire District, who have been appointed as fire wardens by the Commissioner of Natural Resources for Minnesota.

715.03 PROHIBITED MATERIALS. No person shall conduct, cause or permit any
of the following material:

Subd. 1 Oils, petro fuels, rubber, plastics, chemically treated materials or other materials which produce excessive or noxious smoke such as tires, railroad ties, treated, painted or glued wood composite shingles, tar paper, insulation, composition board, sheetrock, wiring, paint or paint filters.

Subd. 2 Hazardous waste or salvage operations, or open burning of solid waste generated from an industrial or manufacturing process or from a service or commercial establishment or building material generated from demolition or commercial or institutional structures.

Subd. 3 Discarded material resulting from the handling, processing, storage, preparation, serving or consumption of food.

Subd. 4 Leaves or grass clippings.

715.04 STATUTE ADOPTED BY REFERENCE. Minnesota Statutes Sections
88.16 through 88.22 are hereby incorporated by reference in this Section 715 as if fully set forth herein. In the event of any inconsistency between this Section 715 and said sections of Minnesota Statutes, the provision that places the greater restrictions or the higher standard shall apply.

715.05 OPEN BURNING PERMITS.

Subd. 1 Permits Required. No person shall start or allow any open burning anywhere within the City without first having obtained a permit, except that a permit is not required for any fire which is a Recreational Fire as defined herein.

Subd. 2 Purposes Allowed for Open Burning. Open burn permits may be issued only for the following purposes:

(a) Elimination of fire or health hazard that cannot be abated
by other practical means.

(b) Ground thawing for utility repair and construction.

(c) Disposal of vegetative matter for managing forest, prairie or wildlife habitat, and in the development and maintenance of land and rights-of-way where chipping, composting, landspreading or other alternative methods are not practical.

(d) Disposal of diseased trees generated on site, diseased or infected nursery stock, or diseased bee hives.

(e) Disposal of unpainted, untreated, non-glued lumber and wood shakes generated from construction, where recycling, reuse, removal or other alternative disposal methods are not practical.

Subd. 3 Permit Application for Open Burning and Permit Fees.

(a) Open Burning permits shall be obtained by making application on a form prescribed by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and adopted by the Centennial Fire District. The permit application shall be presented to the Fire Chief, Fire Marshal or an Assistant Fire Marshal. Each application shall be accompanied by a fee as set from time to time in Section 370 of this Code.

(b) Upon receipt of the completed Open Burning permit application and permit fee, the Fire Chief, Fire Marshal or Assistant Fire Marshal shall schedule a preliminary site inspection to locate the proposed burn site, note special conditions, set dates and times of permitted burn and review fire safety considerations. The official reviewing the application shall also develop a burn event safety plan for the requested burn.

(c) If established criteria for the issuance of an open burning
permit are not met, or, during review of said application, it is determined that a practical alternative method for disposal of the material exists, or a pollution or nuisance condition would result, or if a burn event safety plan cannot be drafted to the satisfaction of the official reviewing the application, the official may deny the application for the open burn permit.

Subd. 4 Notice of Burn Event. If the permit application is approved, the City shall mail a written notice to each owner of affected property and property situated wholly or partly within 350 feet of the site of the Open Burn. The notice shall set forth pertinent details regarding the Open Burn, and shall be mailed at least ten (10) days prior to the Open Burn.

Subd. 5 Permit Holder Responsibility.

(a) Prior to starting an Open Burn, the permit holder shall be responsible for confirming that no burning ban or air quality alert is in effect. Every Open Burn event shall be constantly attended by the permit holder. The Open Burn site shall have available, appropriate communication and fire suppression equipment as set out in the burn event safety plan.

(b) The Open Burn shall be completely extinguished before the permit holder leaves the site. No fire may be allowed to smolder with no flame present. It is the responsibility of the permit holder to have a valid permit, as required by this section, available for inspection on the site.

(c) The permit holder is responsible for the compliance and implementation of all general conditions, special conditions, and the burn event safety plan as established in the permit issued. The permit holder shall be responsible for all costs incurred as a result of the burn, including, but not limited to, fire suppression and administrative fees.
Subd. 6 Revocation of Open Burning Permit.

The Open Burning Permit is subject to revocation at the discretion of a DNR forest officer, or the Fire Chief, Fire Marshal, or Assistant Fire Marshal. Reasons for revocation include, but are not limited to: A fire hazard existing or developing during the course of the burn, any of the conditions of the permit being violated during the course of the burn, pollution or nuisance conditions developing during the course of the burn, or a fire smoldering with no flame present.

715.06 BURNING BAN OR AIR QUALITY ALERT. No Recreational Fire or Open
Burn will be permitted when the City or DNR has officially declared a burning ban due to
potential hazardous fire conditions or when the MPCA has declared an Air Quality Alert.

715.07 VIOLATION. Any violation of the provisions of this Section 715, or of the terms of any permit issued pursuant to this section, shall be a misdemeanor. Each day a violation exists shall be a separate violation.

Section 2. Effective Date. The effective date of the ordinance is passage and publication.

Passed by the Circle Pines City Council…