Tree waste rules in British Columbia: open burning smoke zones, setbacks, banned materials and burn registration

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It follows B.C. Reg. 152/2019 (Open Burning Smoke Control Regulation), B.C. Reg. 38/2005 (Wildfire Regulation) and B.C. Reg. 320/2004 (Waste Discharge Regulation), all shown by the King's Printer with the note that each consolidation is current to October 6, 2026. The Open Burning Smoke Control Regulation shows its last amendment as October 27, 2025, by B.C. Reg. 171/2025.

What counts as open burning

According to B.C. Reg. 152/2019, open burning means burning vegetative debris in an open fire, with two exceptions: burning for a domestic or agricultural purpose when every branch or piece is under 3 cm across, and a campfire. If domestic or agricultural debris includes some pieces of 3 cm or more but all are under 10 cm, only sections 9, 12 and 30 apply: the 5 km limit, the banned materials and the director's power to prohibit burning. If some pieces are 10 cm or more across, the whole regulation applies. Nothing in the regulation authorizes a fire banned by a fire department, local government or improvement district, or one that is against the Wildfire Act.

Rules for all open burning

Debris targeted for burning may not be moved from where it originates except within a 5 km radius of that place.
Anyone who targets debris for burning must first use every reasonable alternative for reducing, reusing or recycling it.
All reasonable efforts must be taken to cut smoke, including keeping soil out of the debris, building piles to maximize air flow, and maximizing seasoned debris. Seasoned means dried to a dry basis moisture content of 30% or less, piled for at least 4 months, or from standing dead timber.
The materials in the Waste Discharge Regulation definition of burning prohibited material may not be burned or used as accelerant. That list has 24 items, including treated or painted wood products, demolition waste, plastics, rubber, tires, furniture, domestic waste and used oil. Construction waste is on the list except for lumber not treated with preservatives or chemicals and not coated with paint, varnish, oil or other finish.
Burning must be at least 500 m from neighbouring residences and businesses open during regular hours, and 1,000 m from the property line of schools, hospitals and community care facilities. The regulation allows 100 m and 500 m if conditions are met: debris piled with the largest horizontal dimension no more than twice the height, no stumps, each piece under 50 cm across, seasoned debris, notice at least 24 hours ahead to occupants within 500 m, a good ventilation forecast where forecasts are available, a start no earlier than one hour after sunrise, and an end by 4 p.m. or two hours before sunset, whichever is later.
Burning may not start, and no more debris may be added, when local air flow is likely to put smoke onto a nearby population centre or work camp, or to cut visibility at airports or highways.

Smoke sensitivity zones

The regulation sorts land into high, medium and low smoke sensitivity zones, shown on maps listed in a schedule. For private land smaller than 64 hectares that lies in or partly in a high zone, burning is capped at 12 days or parts of days a calendar year and 6 days or parts of days a calendar month. The length of a burn depends on the zone.

Zone	Length the regulation allows	Forecast and timing it names
High	Less than one day; or more than one day but less than 2 days	Seasoned debris. Ventilation forecast "good" for the first day, "good" or "fair" for the second. Ends by 4 p.m. on the second day.
Medium	Less than one day; or more than one day but less than 4 days	Forecast "good" for the first day, "good" or "fair" for the second. Ends by 4 p.m. on the fourth day.
Low	A consecutive period of less than 6 days	Forecast "good" or "fair" for the first day. Ends by 4 p.m. on the sixth day.

Open burning at a dry land sort area in a high zone, and at a facility making wood products other than whole logs, needs a permit or approval under the Environmental Management Act. Burning diseased vegetative debris and burning under a community wildfire risk reduction plan have their own divisions, which include written notice to a director at least 24 hours ahead for diseased debris. The regulation also has a division for air curtain incinerators.

Wildfire Regulation categories

The text of the Wildfire Regulation sorts open fires by size. A category 2 open fire burns one pile not over 2 m high and 3 m wide, or two such piles at once. A category 3 open fire burns three or more such piles at once, any pile over 2 m high or 3 m wide, windrows up to 200 m long and 15 m wide, or more than 0.2 ha of grass or stubble. For category 3 in or within 1 km of forest land or grass land, the person must get a burn registration number by phone or from an official, build a fuel break around each pile or windrow, keep the fire watched and patrolled with a fire fighting hand tool on hand, and put the fire out by the date set by whoever issued the number.

Fines

Section 32 of B.C. Reg. 152/2019 sets maximum fines on conviction: CA$200,000 for breaking the banned materials rule (section 12), the section 17 rules on which division applies, or an order under section 30(4); CA$50,000 for breaking sections 9, 10, 11, 13, 14 or 15; and CA$5,000 for breaking the record and reporting rule in section 31.

For other places see the table on tree waste and chip rules. Washington State has its own page on tree waste rules in Washington. The shared Waste Discharge Regulation holds the banned materials list.