[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of St. Joseph 2-6-1997. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Citations — See Ch. 6.
Solid waste — See Ch. 163.
[Amended 4-7-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-3]
A. 
Closed fire season declared: In accordance with the provisions of § 26.13 of the Wisconsin Statutes, The Town of St. Joseph does declare a closed fire season and every person is forbidden to set fire at any time on any land in this Town without permission.
B. 
Permit required: Every person, pursuant to § 60.555, Wis. Stats., and other provisions as they may apply and this chapter, in the Town of St. Joseph shall seek and obtain a fire safety permit from the Town of St. Joseph, unless exempt by this chapter, for any outdoor fire to be ignited in the Town of St. Joseph. All requirements of this chapter are for protecting and promoting the health, safety and welfare of the residents of the Town.
A. 
The application and permit shall designate a single area subject to the burning permit, and the permit shall be issued only for the designated single property. Any permit issued under this chapter is neither transferable nor assignable, either as to person or as to location. No person shall be issued a burning permit in the Town of St. Joseph who has failed to properly and fully complete and submit to the Fire Chief or persons designated by the Fire Chief of the Town of St. Joseph the application form as developed and provided by the Town of St. Joseph.
B. 
The application shall include but not be limited to:
(1) 
The name of the applicant.
(2) 
The address of the applicant.
(3) 
The telephone number of the applicant.
(4) 
The actual location of the proposed burning area. (A separate permit is required for each different burn location.)
[Amended 8-4-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-5]
[Amended 9-12-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-10]
The following are exempt from this permit requirement:
A. 
Persons who burn materials in a stove or furnace inside a building.
B. 
Persons who burn charcoal or other combustible materials for domestic cooking outdoors at their residence or who burn charcoal or other combustible materials for domestic cooking outdoors in public parks. This exemption does not apply upon a declared public fire emergency by the State Department of Natural Resources.
C. 
In an emergency, fires used to warm the person or to cook food.
D. 
Fires set by the Fire Department for training purposes.
[Amended 8-4-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-5]
A. 
A permit shall be issued for the permitted use. The permit shall be issued by the Fire Chief or persons designated by the Fire Chief for the Town of St. Joseph prior to any person igniting a fire in the Town of St. Joseph. In addition to receiving the permit, the permit holder must follow the procedures as outlined in § 84-5 each time he/she wishes to ignite a fire.
B. 
There are no daily permits issued. Each resident wishing to burn within the Town must obtain a permit.
A. 
On the day the permit holder wishes to burn, the permit holder must call the St. Croix County Communication Center at 386-4701. The permit holder will be asked his name, the location of the burn and phone number. The permit holder may then burn.
B. 
(Reserved)[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection B, regarding notification of the end of burning, was repealed 8-4-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-5.
C. 
The permit holder must use this procedure each day the permit holder wishes to burn. The permit holder must not leave fires burning unattended.
D. 
If there is a burning ban set by the Fire Chief at the time the permit holder calls, the St. Croix County Communication Center will advise that burning will not be allowed until the ban is lifted.
The Town Board or Fire Chief(s) of the Town of St. Joseph may revoke a burning permit, and no person shall be issued or reissued a burning permit in the Town of St. Joseph if the applicant or permittee:
A. 
Fails to establish adequate fire protection and fire prevention activities at the requested or permitted burning location when established by the Town of St. Joseph as a condition to the permit.
B. 
Fails to install or maintain adequate fire safety equipment during the requested or permitted use when established by the Town of St. Joseph as a condition to the permit.
C. 
Fails to prevent burning activities that are not authorized by the permit of the Town of St. Joseph at the requested or permitted burning location.
D. 
Fails to prevent at or near the requested or permitted burning location any burning activities larger than three feet in diameter within 15 feet of any fence or property line.
E. 
Fails to allow physical access to the requested or permitted burning area location by the Fire Chief or designee for inspection purposes upon prior notice.
[Amended 9-12-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-10]
A. 
The Town of St. Joseph prohibits any person from the igniting of any fires outdoors in the Town of St. Joseph upon days declared emergency fire days by the Fire Department or the State Department of Natural Resources.
B. 
The Town of St. Joseph prohibits commercial burning.
C. 
Pursuant to §§ NR 429.04 and 502.11, Wis. Adm. Code, the Town of St. Joseph prohibits burning trash, recyclable materials, banned materials or separated materials, except for yard waste and small quantities of dry combustible household rubbish (not to include wet combustible rubbish, garbage, oily substances, asphalt, plastic or rubber products), including paper, cardboard and clean untreated wood from a single family or household.
D. 
A permittee shall report to emergency services any fire in the Town of St. Joseph where the fire is out of control.
E. 
The permit holder is responsible for the fire at all times.
F. 
The permit holder may ignite and maintain only one fire at a time.
A. 
Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter or knowingly aiding or abetting another in the violation thereof shall, upon conviction, pay a forfeiture as set by the Town Board of $250 per incident and doubling every day for subsequent offenses up to a limit of $5,000, including the costs and attorney fees in prosecution. Each day in violation of this chapter constitutes a separate offense subject to the provisions of Subsection D of this section.
[Amended 9-12-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-10]
B. 
If a member of the Fire Department finds a resident burning without a permit, the resident will be required to extinguish the fire until a permit has been obtained following the procedures as outlined in § 84-2.
C. 
If the Fire Department is called to any fire, the resident may be charged for the cost of the fire call as determined by the Fire Chief(s).
[Amended 8-4-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-5]
D. 
The amount of forfeiture and costs shall be as set forth in Chapter 6, Citations, and shall be subject to annual review.
E. 
Fees. There shall be no fee for the permit.
[Amended 8-4-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-5]
[Added 9-12-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-10]
If any specific portion of this chapter is held to be unconstitutional, unlawful or invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of this chapter shall be unaffected and remain in full force and effect.