Open Burning Season in Delaware Opens October 1st
Open burning in Delaware can resume on October 1st as the Ozone Season comes to an end. The burning ban as been in place since the end of April. However remember when you burn cut or fallen limbs, dead branches or shrubbery – you are limited to a maximum of 27 cubic feet of yard waste burned at one time – you can add more to the fire as it materials burn down. And it’s against state law to burn leaves, grass, trash, garbage or refuse, including, but not limited to: tires, construction or demolition waste, paper, cardboard, plastic, furniture, fabric, and mattresses.
Before you burn – contact the County Fire Board (Kent County – 302-734-6040 / Sussex County – 302-856-6306). Burning can only occur between 8am and 4pm, never leave a fire unattended and have easy access to a garden hose or fire extinguisher.
Additional information from DNREC:
Complaints about illegal open burning should be reported to the toll-free DNREC Environmental Hotline at 800-662-8802.
DNREC offers the following open burning guidelines:
- Pile materials you plan to burn as far away as practical from houses and other structures, your own and your neighbors’.
- Be considerate of those around you in choosing when and where to burn.
- Keep a garden hose, full water buckets, or fire extinguisher ready in case you need to reduce or put out the fire.
- Fire companies, forest management officials, and farmers must apply for and receive written approval for certain open burning activities through DNREC’s e-permitting system
Delawareans may also want to consider alternatives to burning, such as:
- Using curbside or drop-off yard waste sites. More information is available at the de.gov/yardwaste webpage.
- Chipping or shredding limbs and branches to convert them into useful mulch.
- Adding yard waste to a compost pile to support a nutrient-rich backyard garden. More information is available at the de.gov/composting webpage.
More information about open burning in Delaware from Oct. 1-April 30 and about the state’s Ozone Season (when open burning is banned each year from May 1-Sept. 30) is available at the de.gov/openburning webpage.