The city hereby adopts the outdoor burning rules as outlined in title 30 of the Texas Administrative Code, sections 111.201–111.211. If a conflict occurs between said sections of title 30 and this article, the stricter of the two codes shall prevail.
(Ordinance 11-04-03, sec. 1, adopted 11/4/00)
No person may cause, suffer, allow, or permit any outdoor burning within the city limits except as specifically provided by this article. The burning of household trash, or garbage of any form, or municipal solid waste, is prohibited except as provided herein. It shall also be unlawful for any person to light or have lighted any fire in any street, alley, thoroughfare or public property. Outdoor disposal or disposition of any material capable of igniting spontaneously, with the exception of the storage of fossil fuels, shall not be allowed. No furniture, construction/ demolition materials, heavy oils, asphalt materials, potentially explosive materials, chemical wastes, and items containing natural or synthetic rubber shall be burned.
(Ordinance 11-04-03, sec. 2, adopted 11/4/00)
Only fires under the conditions described below will be permitted:
(1) 
Domestic waste burning.
(A) 
Domestic waste burning at a property designed for and used exclusively as a private residence, housing not more than three families, when collection of domestic waste is not provided or authorized by the local governmental entity having jurisdiction, and when the waste is generated only from that property, providing that waste burning is done within a fireproof enclosure in such a manner to prevent said fire from escaping. Domestic waste fires do not require a permit.
(B) 
Provision of waste collection refers to collection at the premises where the waste is generated. Domestic waste includes those wastes that normally result from the function of life within a residence and includes such things as kitchen garbage, untreated lumber, cardboard boxes, packaging, clothing, grass, leaves, and branch trimmings.
(C) 
Examples of wastes not considered domestic waste that cannot be burned include such things as tires, non-wood construction debris, furniture, carpet, electrical wire and appliances.
(D) 
All burning of domestic waste shall be conducted in accordance with and subject to the general rules for burning as set out in section 5.03.006 of this article, with the exception of section 5.03.006(a), (d), and (e). No burning shall be allowed in such a manner as to constitute a public nuisance.
(2) 
Fire training.
Outdoor burning shall be authorized for training of firefighting personnel when requested in writing by an officer of the city volunteer fire department. An “officer” is deemed to mean a member of the city volunteer fire department of the rank of captain or higher.
(3) 
Domestic outdoor fires.
Fires are allowed out-of-doors for cooking or warmth, provided such fire is built in a fireproof container, such as a bar-b-que pit or chimney, made of brick, stone, metal or other fireproof materials, in such a manner to prevent said fire from escaping. Domestic outdoor fires do not require a permit.
(4) 
Fires for recreational or ceremonial purposes.
Fires used solely for recreational or ceremonial purposes shall be allowed subject to the provisions of section 5.03.004. No permit fee will be required.
(5) 
Land clearing.
Special permission must be obtained for the burning of vegetation from the clearing of land. See section 5.03.004 for obtaining permission to burn.
(Ordinance 11-04-03, sec. 3, adopted 11/4/00)
(a) 
Application for a “permit to burn” shall be made to the city secretary in writing by the owner, operator, or other person in control of the property upon which the burning is to occur. The city office will be open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, with the exception of holidays, for purposes of receiving such applications. The application shall indicate the permitted address and the applicant’s name, address and telephone number and valid driver’s license or other identification number.
(b) 
The permit is effective for a period of thirty (30) days from the date of issuance.
(c) 
The requestor must obtain final approval to burn from an officer of the city volunteer fire department immediately prior to the start of burning to ensure that weather conditions will be conducive to the requested type of burning.
(d) 
A permit is automatically voided if the approving entity or person considers the conditions unsafe.
(Ordinance 11-04-03, sec. 4, adopted 11/4/00)
The fee for a “permit to burn” shall be paid before the permit is issued. The fee for such permit shall be established from time to time by the city council and maintained in the offices of the city.
(Ordinance 11-04-03, sec. 5, adopted 11/4/00; Ordinance adopting Code)
(a) 
The requestor must contact the appropriate authority as indicated in section 5.03.004. A designated authority shall inspect the burn site and materials to ensure that no prohibited materials are included and that general requirements are being followed.
(b) 
Burning is permitted only when the wind direction and other meteorological conditions are such that the smoke and other pollutants will not present a hazard to any public road or have an effect on any building or structure.
(c) 
If at any time the burning causes or may tend to cause smoke to blow onto or across a street, roadway or highway, it is the responsibility of the permitted person to post flagpersons on the affected roads.
(d) 
Fires must be kept downwind of or at least 300 feet away from any neighboring structure.
(e) 
Burning shall not commence when the surface wind speed is predicted to be less than six (6) miles per hour (or 5 knots) or greater than twenty-three (23) miles per hour (or 20 knots) during the burn period.
(f) 
Burning shall not be conducted during periods of actual or predicted persistent low-level atmospheric temperature inversions.
(g) 
Burning may begin no earlier than one hour after sunrise and must end the same day no later than one hour before sunset.
(h) 
A responsible party must be present while the burn is active. Such persons shall have a water hose connected to a reliable water supply or have other extinguishing equipment readily available for use.
(i) 
Any residual fires and/or smoldering objects that continue to emit smoke must be extinguished at the end of the burn.
(j) 
Only brush/vegetation generated and gathered from the burn site area will be permitted. There shall be no importation of brush from any other properties for the purpose of burning.
(Ordinance 11-04-03, sec. 6, adopted 11/4/00)
The authority to conduct outdoor burning under this article does not exempt or excuse the requestor from complying with all other applicable laws or ordinances, regulations and orders of any governmental entity having jurisdiction, even though the burning is otherwise conducted in compliance with this article.
(Ordinance 11-04-03, sec. 7, adopted 11/4/00)
(a) 
Violators of this article shall be issued a citation, and upon conviction for such violation shall be punished by a penalty in accordance with the general penalty provided in section 1.01.009 of this code. Each day of violation shall be a separate offense for purposes of establishing a fine.
(b) 
The city volunteer fire department is authorized to extinguish any fire found to be in violation of any provisions of this article within the incorporated city limits.
(Ordinance 11-04-03, sec. 9, adopted 11/4/00; Ordinance adopting Code)