It's summer in Michigan. Most of the spring clean-up has taken place in our yards but it seems like there is always some yard debris to take care of. While outdoor burning of natural yard debris is permitted under the correct legal circumstances, open burning of most household trash is not allowed. Care must be taken to ensure the safety of your property and the property of others. You are responsible for suppression and damage costs of a wildfire caused by open burning that you do. You must have a burn permit to do open burning. Click HERE for the burn permit website.
Open burning is the burning of unwanted materials such as paper, trees, brush, leaves, grass, and other debris, where smoke and other emissions are released directly into the air without passing through a chimney or stack. Open burning also includes incineration devices that do not control the combustion air to maintain an adequate temperature and do not provide sufficient residence time for complete combustion (R 336.1115(b) and R 299.4104). Open burning pollutes the air and poses a fire hazard. The air pollution created by open burning can irritate eyes and lungs, obscure visibility, soil nearby surfaces, create annoying odors, and is a danger to those with respiratory conditions.
Trash Burning Restrictions
On April 19 Public Act 102 of 2012 was signed into law, prohibiting the open burning of
household trash that contains plastic, rubber, foam, chemically treated wood, textiles, electronics, chemicals or hazardous materials. The burning of these household trash items pose a danger to human health and the environment. The law amends the open burning provisions contained in Section 11522 of the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act
(Public Act 451 of 1994). The changes take effect on October 16 and contain penalty provisions, which may be enforced by local units of government, should a local ordinance not exist.
While many cities, villages, and townships throughout the state have ordinances that prohibit trash burning, in some areas of the state there are no ordinances to address the practice. Addressing trash burning complaints in these areas can be a problem for local officials. The new law provides a new tool that local governments can use to address trash burning complaints in
their community.
Health Risks of Burning Trash
Chemicals from the burning of household trash may include hydrogen cyanide, sulfur dioxides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, benzene, lead, mercury, and dioxin. The fine particulate
matter, containing a variety of chemicals, can have acute and chronic health effects on exposed people including cardiovascular and respiratory conditions (e.g., asthma). Long-term and repeated exposure to some of the chemicals emitted during trash burning have been shown to impair neurodevelopment in children, the immune system, reproductive system, and thyroid function. Some pollutants have been shown to contribute to the onset of diabetes and cancer.
Many of these pollutants emitted can persist in the environment, resulting in future exposures to both people and wildlife. People conducting open burning of household trash as their main method of disposal will frequently be exposed to these hazardous substances. People living in the surrounding area (i.e., neighbors within several hundred feet) will also be frequently exposed to these hazardous substances.
CHECK OUT THE LINKS BELOW FOR WILDFIRE SAFETY
Michigan Burn Permit Website
DNR- Wildfire: Protection and Information
MSU: Wildfire and Firewise
Ready.Gov Wildfires
Home Protection and Family Safety from Wildfires (US Insurance Agents)
DNR- Wildfire: Protection and Information
MSU: Wildfire and Firewise
Ready.Gov Wildfires
Home Protection and Family Safety from Wildfires (US Insurance Agents)