Waikato Regional Council has received more complaints about burnings than usual for this time of year.

For the month to 25 May 2025, it received 36 outdoor burning complaints, up 50 per cent from the same period in 2024, when it received 24 outdoor burning complaints.

Incident Response team leader Wayne Reed says people need to be aware of the impacts of fires on their properties.

“Communication is also key, so we encourage people to talk to their neighbours before they burn.

“We have had a lengthy dry summer and now that the weather has changed, I can understand people will be wanting to have a bit of a clean-up.”

Environmental regulations in this region do allow for certain materials to be burnt, however, people need to ensure that the burning shall not:

• cause adverse effects on human health or the health of flora and fauna
• result in odour that is objectionable that it causes an adverse effect over the property boundary
• discharge particulate matter that is objectionable that it causes an adverse effect over the boundary
• significantly impair visibility beyond the boundary
• cause corrosion or accelerated deterioration to structures beyond the boundary.

Materials that can be burnt, so long as the above conditions are adhered to, and the materials have been sourced from the property, are:

• untreated wood and vegetative matter
• paper and cardboard
• food waste
• non halogenated plastics
• animal carcasses on production land.

To find out more about the effects of burning, and what the rules allow for, please visit the Waikato Regional Council Outdoor burning and air quality webpage

The council also monitors air quality at a number of sites throughout the region. The latest data can be found on the Environmental maps and data webpage.

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