Tree waste rules in Maryland: open fire permits by county, the June to August ban and the premises rule

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It follows regulations .01 to .04 of chapter 26.11.07 of the Code of Maryland Regulations, read through the Cornell Legal Information Institute copies, whose notes show regulations .03 amended effective August 11, 1997 and the others May 22, 1995.

The general rule

According to regulation .02, a person may not cause or permit an open fire except as regulations .03 to .05 provide. Regulation .01 defines an open fire as a fire where any material is burned in the open or in a receptacle other than a furnace, incinerator or other equipment connected to a stack or chimney. It defines public collection of refuse as pickup on a regularly scheduled basis from groups of homes, businesses or other establishments.

Permits by county

According to the text of regulation .03, a control officer may issue or approve a written permit for an open fire on application, subject to review by the Department of the Environment. It sets two groups of counties.

Allegany, Caroline, Dorchester, Garrett, Kent, Queen Anne's, Somerset, St. Mary's, Talbot, Washington, Wicomico and Worcester counties: a permit is allowed if the control officer is satisfied there is no practical alternative method of disposal, no hazardous condition, air pollution or nuisance will result, other fire control laws are followed, no dense smoke material such as tires or roofing is burned, and the material originated on the premises where it is burned.
Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Calvert, Carroll, Cecil, Charles, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Montgomery and Prince George's counties and Baltimore City, from September 1 through May 31 of the following year: the same conditions apply. In Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, Howard, Montgomery and Prince George's counties and Baltimore City, burning may not be done within 500 yards of occupied buildings or a heavily travelled public road.

The control officer may add conditions to limit smoke and protect health and property. For the second group the regulation says methods of burning acceptable to the Department may be approved when the distance limits cannot be met, and that a permit may be granted for fires in the course of agricultural operations or accepted forestry practice. It says that provision does not allow burning household or barnyard trash where public collection is provided.

Summer ban

Regulation .03 prohibits open burning from June 1 through August 31 each year in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Calvert, Carroll, Cecil, Charles, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Montgomery and Prince George's counties and Baltimore City. The exceptions are cooking food on other than commercial premises, recreational fires such as campfires, and fires authorized under regulation .04.

Fires set by public officers

According to the text of regulation .04, public officers may set or permit an open fire with the control officer's concurrence if all reasonable means are used to minimize smoke and the fire is needed for one of the listed purposes. These include preventing a fire hazard that cannot be abated by other means, instructing firefighters, burning pest-infested crops, and good forest resource management practices approved by the Department of Natural Resources Forest Service.

For other places see the table on tree waste and chip rules. Kentucky has its own page: tree waste rules in Kentucky. Rules for moving wood are on moving wood in Maryland.