The burning issue of fires in the open

We've rewritten our Fires in the Open Bylaw - Ngā ture mō te ahi i waho, and you can have your say before it goes to Council to be adopted.

Public consultation on the draft bylaw opens today and closes on Wednesday 11 May.

The proposed bylaw will allow our Council to set and enforce different fire seasons and bans within areas gazetted - or classified - as urban by the New Zealand Fire Service. It also provides other rules to promote fire safety in the district.

Check the maps included with our proposed bylaw on our consultation portal to see if the bylaw would apply to you. There you will also find the full text of the draft bylaw and a detailed explanation of it. You can also have your say online through the portal.

If you are not within an "urban" area, the rules around what you can and can't do are set by either the Thames Valley Rural Fire Authority or the Department of Conservation. Head to our web page for more information on fire rules in these areas: www.tcdc.govt.nz/fire

The main changes

The bylaw has a couple of important changes to make it more realistic for our communities and more enforceable for our Council from our previous bylaw on the subject.

Under the previous bylaw, we were all required to have a permit for any and all fires in the open within our district because we were always either under a restricted fire season or a total fire ban. That requirement also applied to fireworks (which are a fire in the open) and outdoor fireplaces.

Under the proposed bylaw, permits would not be required in urban areas for permanent, safe, outdoor fireplaces that meet the criteria in the bylaw (full details on our consultation portal, but they must have a chimney with a spark arrester and a non-combustible hearth).

The proposed rules around fireworks fall into the "don't be a bad neighbour" category: As long as you're being safe and not causing a nuisance to neighbours, no permit is required in urban areas unless we're in a prohibited fire season - when no fires in the open are permitted due to the extreme fire risk. (Note: We've never had to use a prohibited fire season before.)

To lodge a submission, read the bylaw and submit using our online consultation portal. Or:

• email us at customer.services@tcdc.govt.nz;
• fax us on (07) 868 0234;
• complete a submission form and post it to us at Thames-Coromandel District Council, Private
• Bag, Thames 3540; or
• drop it into the area offices in Thames, Coromandel, Whitianga or Whangamata.

Submission forms and hard copies of the statement of proposal and the proposed bylaw are available at all our area offices and libraries.

If you have any questions about this proposal or about how to make a submission, please contact us on 07 868 0200 or email customer.services@tcdc.govt.nz.

The submission period closes at 4pm on Wednesday 11 May. Hearings on the submissions will be scheduled for June. You don't have to attend a hearing for your submission to be considered, but it is an opportunity to speak in support of your submission and for elected members to ask you questions.

Our Council will consider all written and verbal submissions received and decide on any amendments to the proposed bylaw as a result.

Council will consider a final Fires in the Open Bylaw for adoption in August 2016 and it is planned that any new rules will come into effect in September 2016.

Until then, the current rules apply. Head to our website at www.tcdc.govt.nz/fire to find out more.

ends

© Scoop Media