Open Burning Season Begins This Week

Open burning season starts on Jan. 15 and ends on May 1 in Massachusetts. Hamilton and Wenham residents can obtain permits -- a must -- through their local fire departments.

In Hamilton:

Burning permits cost $20 ($10 for seniors) and the application is available online. Fill out the application and bring it to the fire department with your payment to obtain your permit.

BEFORE burning each day, permitted property owners must call 978-468-5513.

In Wenham:

Burning permits cost $23 (12.50 for seniors) and the permit can be purchased online.

BEFORE burning each day, permitted property owners must activate their permits online.

In both towns, fires must be extinguished by 4 p.m. each day and the fires must be monitored at all times. Additionally, if the local fire department must come to a property and extinguish a fire, the cost of the response will fall to the homeowner.

“Weather conditions can change rapidly, especially in the spring, and fire wardens will determine on a daily basis when it is safe to conduct open burning,” it says on the DEP website. “If winds kick up or other atmospheric conditions change suddenly, making it unsafe to burn, permits can be rescinded (cancelled).”

Find out more provisions and laws surrounding open burning, including materials that can (or cannot) be burned. For instance, did you know raspberry stalks and infected beehives can be burned, but grass, hay and leaves are strictly prohibited. And as if we had to tell you, you can’t burn a tire, either.

Learn lots more on safety, as well as burning alternatives and how to obtain a permit, on the DEP website.

Charlene Arsenault contributed to this article.