Brush Burning in Acton

I know I am a little late with this, but it is brush season and due to the mild winter we have had and the lack of rain, the potential for brush fires has risen.

There is also a lot of down trees and limbs in the forest from the October snow storm we had. So combined with the the lack of moisture and increased fuel the potential is great for big fires. Groton had one last year that lasted for days. For those of you who smoke please do not discard your butts out the car window. Just recently in Massachusetts a Condo unit burned due to careless disposal of cigarette butts that caused a grass fire and lead up to the unit that burned.

So below is some info on burning safely. I also included some photos of when I used to Wildland fire suppression with the National Park Service out in the Western part of the Country. Enjoy!

• Brush burning in Acton is from January 15^th to May 1st. You must obtain a burning permit from the Fire Chief's Office.
• Burning is allowed from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. No fires may be started after 12pm.
• Burning anything outside can be dangerous weather it’s a bonfire, camp fire, cooking fire, brush fire etc. In a split second things can get out of hand and cause personal as well as physical damage. You are responsible if this should happen.
• We have had our share of brush fires due to fires not being put out after people are done with them. 

The purpose of the burning season is to collect all downed branches and limbs and dispose of them. The land fills will not take brush any more so the only way to dispose of it is to burn it. Ultimately the best thing for the environment would be to chip the brush and use the wood chips in the landscape.

The following is what you can burn legally:

• You may burn, with limits: brush, cane, driftwood, forestry debris, tree prunings, dead raspberry stalks, blueberry patches and infected beehives. 

This is what you’re not allowed to burn:

• Grass, hay, leaves, stumps or tires. The reason for this is that these items put out a dark thick smoke that can be a harmful for people with breathing ailments. The tires especially put out an acrid smoke that is a health concern.

If you have brush to burn the most important things you should do is first call
the chief and get his permission. Second, check the weather and make sure the
conditions are right and that there are no unexpected changes in weather. The
reason for this if there comes a change in the weather, most of the time it will
bring winds too which could spread a fire. You want your brush fire a minimum of 75 ft from a structure, and an adequate water supply near by. You will also want to keep a phone nearby just in case something goes  wrong you can call the fire dept.

You would like to have it on dirt, but if you must have it on the grass, you should
dig a circle around it down to mineral soil this is to help prevent it from
spreading. You will want to start small dry natural kindling is best. DO NOT
use gasoline or charcoal lighter fluid as an accelerant. You want to keep it
with in limits do no add more to the fire than you can safety put out with your
hose. Do not add green (live) material to the fire this will only product thick
smoke. Make sure someone attends to the fire at all times until it is out. To
extinguish the fire burn everything down to the coals soak with water, spread
it around and soak again. Then take the back of you hand and carefully feel for
any hot spots. If you do find some hot spots spread the coals and soak it
again.