Much to the chagrin of many rural Niagara County
residents who read this newspaper, the Department of Environmental
Conservation’s annual ban on the open burning of brush goes into effect mere
days from now.
From March 16 to May 14 of every year the state
does not allow the burning of limbs, sticks and tree mass in towns where such
activities are otherwise allowed the rest of the year (that would be
communities with populations under 20,000). Over that two month period, the DEC
still allows small cooking fires and campfires that are less than 3 feet in
height and 4 feet in length, width or diameter.
This law is a necessary tool to prevent
wildfires, as the grasses, leaves, and weeds of the springtime are perfect
fuels for fires that can and do advance from their intended purpose. While the
ground may seem saturated from snow melt and spring rains, the same can’t be
said for the plants – they just spent a winter in suspended animation or death
and they don’t have any water in them. Those dry plants will ignite from a
nearby flame or windblown ashes. The ban’s end date coincides with the greening
of that local plant life.
The law, which went into effect in
2009, continues to be a sore subject for local property owners. Brush burning
had always been a rite of spring, as homeowners with spacious country lots
found themselves cleaning up and disposing of the remnants of winter storms
while local farmers were getting rid of trees that fell from woodlots and
hedgerows into their fields.
Despite the DEC’s reasonable
expectations and the very real threat of a $500 fine (for the first offense)
and larger ones and even jail time for repeat offenses, rural landowners
continue to burn during the ban. They certainly can’t cite ignorance to the
law, as each year there is an incredible amount of press that the ban receives
in local broadcast and print news. What they can cite is their own indifference
to it; I guarantee the common sentiment is, “It’s my property. I can do what I
want.”
Local property owners took that cavalier
approach to a whole new level last season. Many of them probably assumed that
the brutal winter of 2014-2015 was so cold and snowy that the ground was soaked
from the thaw and therefore fires wouldn’t happen. But they did…and often. The
Niagara County Sheriff’s office told me that during last year’s prohibition
period (which was made a week longer because of the dry May weather) there were
58 fire calls across Niagara County for brush and grass fires that went out of
control.
Think about the scale of that – 58
times over a two-month period, wildfires threatened and destroyed property (be
it land, woods or structures) and wildlife. Fortunately, no human life was
taken. Not only were the properties of the burners affected, but so were their
neighbor’s lands and buildings.
Luckily, no houses or forests were lost
in those five dozen crises, and that’s a testament to our local volunteer
firefighters. They abused themselves and their equipment (it’s never good to
drive fire trucks across a beat up field or into a forest) to keep these out of
control fires at bay. So, while some guys will throw around the property rights
argument, they need to understand that their neighbors have a right to safely
enjoy their property and the firemen have a right to enjoy their weekends and
evenings with their families (when most of these wildfires occur).
So, I ask that my fellow countryfolk
use some common sense this spring and respect the law, the environment and your
fellow man. Hold off on your brush fires and bon fires until June. A simple
fire can quickly become a major situation this time of year. As Smokey Bear
says, “only you can prevent wildfires.”
From the 07 March 2016 Greater Niagara Newspapers
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