Within an hour after county commissioners lifted the burn ban in late December 2011, Bastrop County environmental enforcement investigator Gretchen Gardner had her hands full responding to illegal burns. She wasn’t alone – area volunteer firefighters responded to dozens of calls as huge fires blazed well into the night – even though burning at night is illegal.

Gardner is still responding to calls about outdoor burning and she’s issuing citations if they’re illegal.

“The community as a whole and even some law enforcement officials are not aware of the outdoor burning regulations, many of which are being violated,” Gardner said.

Gardner suggests that landowners call their local fire departments before they begin burning, provide an address and let officials know when they will burn and what is being burned.

Valuable time and resources that could be used elsewhere are being depleted when firefighters have to respond to outdoor burns.

“Don’t start your outdoor burning earlier than one hour after sunrise,” Gardner said. “Your burn must be completed on the same day and you need to be finished no later than one hour before sunset. And it has to be attended by a responsible party at all times.”

Gardner has responded to several cases where a person has been paid for clearing or disposing of material and transports it to another location and burns it, which is illegal according to county and state statutes. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has guidelines for outdoor burning to protect people and property and it’s Gardner’s job to enforce them.

On Gardner’s do not burn list are: rubber tires, electrical wires, lead acid batteries, roofing shingles, insulation, treated lumber, carpet or carpet padding, aluminum, televisions, computers, appliances or creosoted products. And if you don’t think anyone would be crazy enough to burn a TV or a computer, check out the photographs she’s taken that accompany this article.

Outdoor burning should not be done within 300 feet of a school, business, residence or barn, Gardner said. If the burn causes smoke to blow onto or across a highway, it’s the responsibility of the person doing the burning to post flaggers on those roads.

Gardner said violations of the Outdoor Burning Rule are punishable for an individual by fines of $1,000 to $50,000 and up to six months in jail. Intentional reckless outdoor burning that places another individual in imminent danger carries fines up to $250,000 and up to 5 years in jail. Interestingly, local governments can keep up to 75 percent of the fines they collect under these laws.

When burning is allowed in the county it includes fires for recreation, ceremonies or warmth, which includes campfires, bonfires and cooking fires – as long as you don’t burn non-organic material or treated lumber.

Most outdoor illegal burns are happening when people burn material they’re not supposed to, burn where they’re not supposed to or try to dispose of trash, plastic or debris in their burn piles.

“If residents would think before they burn and take a moment to educate themselves about the rules, Bastrop County would be healthier and safer,” Gardner said.

For more information on the Outdoor Burning Rule see TCEQ guidelines on their website at www.tceq.texas.gov/publications/rg/rg-049.html. To contact Gardner or investigator Victor Lucero, call the Bastrop County Health and Sanitation Services office at 1-800-NODUMPS or (512) 581-4230.

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