Sec. 26.11.07.04. Public Officers May Authorize Certain Fires

Public officers, in the performance of their official duties, may set an open fire or give permission for an open fire, with concurrence of the control officer, if:

A. All reasonable means are employed to minimize smoke; and

B. The fire is necessary for one or more of the following reasons or purposes:

(1) For the prevention of a fire hazard that cannot be abated by other means;

(2) For the instruction of public fire fighters or industrial employees under supervision of the appropriate fire control official;

(3) For the protection of public health or safety when other means for disposing of hazardous waste materials are not available including the burning of hazardous waste authorized under federal law or COMAR 26.13.02.07;

(4) For burning pest-infested crops or products and agricultural burning that is necessary for animal disease control;

(5) For good forest resource management practices as approved by the Department of Natural Resources-Forest Service;

(6) For burning excessive lodging for the purpose of recropping as approved by the Maryland Department of Agriculture or local extension offices;

(7) For the purpose of testing fire fighter training systems fueled by natural gas or propane provided that the:

(a) Source maintains records of the total amount of fuel used and the date of the open fire;

(b) Total combined fuel usage for all systems at the premises does not exceed 5,000 gallons of propane and natural gas combined per week; and

(c) Open fire does not constitute a major source of VOC or NO_x.