THUNDER BAY – The City of Thunder Bay will consider changes to its outdoor burning policies in an effort to address smoke concerns from residents across the city.
Coun. Kristen Oliver, who brought the motion to council on Monday, said those who had raised the concerns typically had health issues exacerbated by smoke exposure.
“They’re impacted by not being able to have dinner on a nice evening on their deck, or have windows open,” she said. “None of them have ever said to cancel the burn permits outright. They’ve always [asked], can we find some ways of mitigating it?”
A motion passed 12-1 on Monday will see city administration bring back a report with options for an outdoor burning bylaw “that would provide a fair and balanced approach of rules and regulations.”
Administration is directed to consult with the public on the issue and report back by Nov. 15, though councillors urged staff to return sooner with potential solutions if possible.
Coun. Brian McKinnon joined several colleagues in agreeing with Oliver that complaints around outdoor burning – particularly from those with health issues – were to be taken seriously.
However, he also argued the ability to have fires was an important part of the summer experience, particularly for residents without camps or cottages.
“This is a thorny issue,” he said. “I’ve already had a couple of calls from people with concerns, and they’re legitimate… I don’t know what the answer is.”
Coun. Andrew Foulds said concerns were legitimate, but the city’s outdoor burning rules were “already really, really tight,” and that he wouldn’t consider an outright ban.
The current rules, which require a $30-a-year permit for open-air burning, and allow fires between 5 p.m. and midnight, were introduced in 2009, said Thunder Bay Fire Rescue chief Greg Hankkio (hours were extended temporarily during the COVID-19 pandemic).
“I think we have a fairly solid process in place,” he said, telling councillors further research would be required before he could recommend potential solutions to smoke concerns.
Oliver argued changes could be as simple as moving burning hours past dinner time, or offering alternate days.
“Noone’s asking for a ban here,” she said. “[People ] have asked, can we look at reducing the hours to 8 p.m. to midnight… or allow burning to happen on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday?”
For Coun. Albert Aiello, those kinds of changes offered a reasonable compromise.
“It’s just a matter of simple give and take here,” he said. “My interpretation is let’s maybe just do it an hour or two later. Let people have the opportunity to have supper first and [not] worry about smoke.”
Coun. Peng You agreed, and questioned the need to wait until November for a report back.
“Let’s push back [to] say 7 o’clock,” You said. “Let’s do it as soon as possible, before the summer.”
Considering a new bylaw is a complex process, said GM of development and emergency services Karen Lewis, while city administration is already at work on a number of other issues.
However, a report on shorter term solutions like a simple change to burning hours could return sooner, she suggested.
Hankkio pledged to consult fire services in other jurisdictions on potential solutions to smoke concerns.
Coun. Trevor Giertuga cast a lone vote against the motion, saying the city had already settled on appropriate policies.
“I think we’re at a really good compromise from where we were before,” he said. “I can tell you that I bet you 90 per cent of the calls I’ve gotten of people complaining about outdoor burning is more of a neighbourhood feud… they’re doing it to aggravate [someone].”
