Cape Breton could change rules on open-air burning with proposed bylaw

The Cape Breton Regional Municipality city hall is pictured on Aug. 28, 2025. (CTV Atlantic / Ryan MacDonald)

A proposed council motion could rewrite the rules on open-air burning in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM).

A new report for the CBRM council recommends they repel the current bylaw on open-air burning and replace it with one that has more consistent regulations for the entire municipality.

The report says By-law No. B-400 Respecting Open Air Burning was implemented in 1999 and has remained unchanged in the last 27 years despite the introduction of the Burn Safe Program and provincewide burning restrictions in Nova Scotia.

“The by-law was developed at a time when provincial wildfire prevention programs, municipal fire prevention practices, outdoor burning appliances, and public expectations differed significantly from those that exist today,” the report reads.

“The existing by-law relies heavily on a municipal permit system that is no loner in use and establishes separate areas of the municipality where burning is either permitted or prohibited.”

According to the report, the current bylaw requires people to receive a permit from a local fire chief for many forms of outdoor burning. The proposed new bylaw would set clear regulations and performance standards for residents to follow without routine permits.

“The proposed by-law also recognizes modern recreational burning practices while maintaining a strong focus on public safety, wildfire prevention, nuisance reduction, and protection of neighbouring properties,” the report reads. “By replacing the existing by-law with a simplified and contemporary framework, the Municipality will improve public understanding of burning requirements, reduce administrative burdens associated with permit processing, and provide clearer enforcement tools for Fire Services and Municipal By-law Enforcement Officers.”

The report says the new bylaw would include:

• regulations that apply across the municipality rather than different rules based on community boundaries
• clear setback requirements from dwellings, structures, fuel sources and combustible materials
• maximum fire size limitations for residential burning
• alignment with the Nova Scotia Burn Safe Map, provincial burn bans and other wildfire prevention measures in the province
• authority for municipal enforcement officers to order the extinguishment of unsafe fires
• defined permitted fuels and prohibited materials
• regulations on brush burning, land clearing and industrial burning activities

The report says the new bylaw will improve public safety, support wildfire prevention and reduce confusion for residents around permitted burning activities.

Council will discuss the motion at their meeting on Tuesday.

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