What are the regulations for open burning within the city limits of Westover?
Burn permits are required on all open burning within the city limits of Westover. Open burning is defined as any burning that takes place outside of an approved fire pit or outdoor fireplace. Examples include burning of leaves, grass clippings, burning construction debris, land clearing, property maintenance, or any fires built on the ground. Burns can be conducted by the property owner, or person with written permission to burn on the property from the property owner, between the hours of 8:00AM and current sunset time if no burn restrictions are currently in effect. If the burn location is located within a neighborhood, the permit applicant must provide proof that the residential covenant of the neighborhood allows open burning prior to one being issued. All burns must be attended by an adult, under NO influence of drugs or alcohol, for the entire duration of burn. Burn locations must be at least 500 ft from nearest inhabited dwelling not on burn location property, 50 feet from any type of structure on the property, and 150 feet from any public roadway and/or 250 feet from any major highway. ONLY natural vegetation, wood, or brush can be burned (no trash, tires, plastics, etc.). The burn permit may be revoked at any time for violation(s) to these regulations.
How do I obtain a burn permit?
Burn permits may be applied for online at the link above labelled “Westover Open Burn Permit Request”. No burn permit will be issued during a red flag warning issued by the National Weather Service, fire danger advisory and/or fire alert issued by the Alabama Forestry Commission, drought emergency issued by the Governor's Office, or summer burn restriction issued by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. Please review the link in the link section above titled “Alabama Forestry Burn Restriction Status” to see what warnings or advisories are currently in effect. If the area of burn is greater than 0.25 acre, a burn permit must be obtained from the Alabama Forestry Commission.
What can I burn?
ONLY natural vegetation, wood, or brush can be burned (no trash, tires, plastics, etc.)
Why is there a burn ban from May 1st through October 31st in our area?
The summer burn ban is issued yearly by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management for several counties including Shelby. This burn ban has nothing to do with fire and/or drought conditions, so even if we have plenty of rain, the ban is still in effect. This ban is part of the effort to protect air quality in areas of the state that have had a history of air pollution problems during the summer months. Additional information can be found in the link section above titled “ADEM Summer Burn Ban Information”.
