Burn ban lifted in unincorporated county

The Whatcom County fire marshal’s office has lifted restrictions on open burning in unincorporated areas of Whatcom County.

Restrictions were put in place on July 12 due to warm weather conditions and decreasing fuel moisture levels. These restrictions were lifted as of 8 a.m. on September 11.

Verbal burn permits are now available through the Outdoor Burning Information Line at 360/778-5903. Written burn permits for fires larger than four feet by four feet are available at the Planning and Development Services Office located at 5280 Northwest Drive in Bellingham. All outdoor burning requires a permit, except for legal recreational fires.

Not all jurisdictions are relieving their outdoor burning restrictions at this time. If your property is located in Point Roberts, Lummi Island or Sandy Point, you must contact your fire district to find out if outdoor burning restrictions have been lifted for those areas.

If your property falls under the jurisdiction of the Washington State Department of Natural Resources or a federal forest or park jurisdiction, you must contact those organizations prior to lighting any fire.

A permanent ban on open burning remains in effect for the cities and urban growth areas of Bellingham, Lynden, Ferndale, Blaine, Everson, Nooksack, Sumas, Birch Bay, Columbia Valley and Cherry Point. For more information on the permanent burn ban, you may contact the Northwest Clean Air Agency at 360/428-1617 or visit their website at nwcleanairwa.gov.

For those in unincorporated Whatcom County, the Whatcom County fire marshal’s office reminded people to use extreme caution, as vegetation is still recovering from the long stretch of dry weather and is susceptible to the spread of fire.

Violations of the county’s burn restrictions can result in a minimum $250 fine. “In addition, if you have an illegal fire that escapes or needs to be extinguished by the fire department, you may be held financially responsible for fire suppression costs and may be criminally charged for reckless burning,” said a notice issued by Whatcom County on September 9.

If you have any questions about open burning in Whatcom County that are not answered by the Outdoor Burning Information Line, please contact the Whatcom County fire marshal’s office at 360/778-5900.