§ 9-1105 — General prohibitions

§ 9-1105. General prohibitions.\n 1. The following are prohibited:\n (a) setting of fires on or near forest land and leaving such fires\nunattended and unquenched;\n (b) setting of a fire which will endanger the property of another;\n (c) setting of forest land on fire except where necessary to implement\nany provision of this chapter, including, but not limited to, paragraph\nv of subdivision two of section 3-0301 of this chapter; provided,\nhowever, that nothing contained in this paragraph shall permit the\nsetting on fire of any land constituting the forest preserve or of any\nstate land within the Adirondack Park or the Catskill Park for any\npurpose other than fire suppression. The department shall promulgate\nregulations governing the use of fire which shall include provisions for\nnotification of, or waiver of notification by, local fire officials;\n (d) setting of a permitted fire in or near forest land without all\ninflammable material having first been removed for a distance of 3 feet\naround the fire;\n (e) the dropping, throwing or otherwise scattering of lighted matches,\nburning cigars, cigarettes or tobacco on forest land;\n (f) the defacing, destruction or removal of any posted notice\ncontaining forest fire warnings, laws or rules and regulations.\n 2. It shall be unlawful to deposit, and leave in any of the fire\ntowns, or in any town included in a fire district as defined in\nsubdivision 2 of section 9-1109 of this title, brush or inflammable\nmaterial upon the right of way of highways.\n 3. No device for generating power which burns wood, coke, lignite or\ncoal shall be operated in, through or near forest land, unless the\nescape of sparks, cinders or coals shall be prevented in such manner as\nmay be required by the department.\n 4. In any of the fire towns, or in any town included in a fire\ndistrict as defined in subdivision 2 of section 9-1109, brush, logs,\nslash or other inflammable material shall not be left or allowed to\nremain on land within 25 feet of the right of way of a railroad or\nwithin 20 feet of the right of way of a public highway.\n 5. It shall be unlawful to set or cause to be set or sustain any open\nfire for purpose of burning logs, leaves, sawdust, slabs, brush, stumps,\ndry grass or other debris, in any of the fire towns, without first\nhaving obtained from the department a written permit so to do.\n 6. Prescribed burns. (a) For the purposes of this subdivision, the\nterm "prescribed burn" shall mean the intentional setting of forest land\non fire, under carefully controlled conditions, in order to manage,\nenhance, or restore populations of plants or animal species or natural\ncommunities on such land.\n (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or any other\nprovision of law, the department may authorize a landowner to conduct\nprescribed burn activities pursuant to a written prescribed burn\nmanagement plan prepared by or for such landowner. The prescribed burn\nmanagement plan shall include, but not be limited to, the following\nelements:\n (i) a discussion of the landowner's training and expertise in\nconducting prescribed burn activities;\n (ii) a map and narrative description identifying the area or areas on\nwhich prescribed burn activities will be undertaken;\n (iii) a description of the ecological purposes and objectives of the\nprescribed burn, including an identification of the specific species or\nnatural communities that are intended to be impacted by the burn;\n (iv) a description of the vegetative cover and fuel loads on each area\nto be subjected to prescribed burning;\n (v) a description of physical parameters, such as time of year, wind\nspeed and direction, and air temperature and humidity, which must be met\nbefore a prescribed burn is initiated;\n (vi) a description of the anticipated intensity and duration of the\nprescribed burn given the fuel loads and physical prescriptions\nestablished in subparagraphs (iv) and (v) of this paragraph;\n (vii) a description of the logistics of the prescribed burn operation,\nnumber of personnel, and fire management equipment that will be deployed\nto assure that the burn is restricted to the area or areas identified\nfor prescribed burn management;\n (viii) a description of fire suppression activities to be immediately\nimplemented should the prescribed burn threaten to escape, or actually\nescape, beyond the boundaries identified for such burn;\n (ix) a procedure for notifying appropriate local fire officials and\nlaw enforcement personnel of the actual date, time, and estimated\nduration of any prescribed burn;\n (x) a procedure for notifying adjacent landowners prior to the\nundertaking of a prescribed burn;\n (xi) a description of the procedures that will be undertaken to assure\nthat the prescribed burn is fully extinguished at the conclusion of the\nburn.\n (c) The department shall promulgate regulations implementing this\nsubdivision prior to authorizing any landowner to undertake prescribed\nburn activities. Such regulations shall include, but not be limited to,\na listing of the necessary elements of the prescribed burn management\nplan, and standards for determining whether a request for authorization\nto conduct prescribed burn activities should be granted.\n (d) The department shall reject any application for authorization to\nconduct a prescribed burn pursuant to this subdivision if the department\ndetermines that the landowner has not demonstrated the necessary\nexpertise to properly implement the prescribed burn plan.\n (e) Before granting a landowner authorization to conduct prescribed\nburn activities, the department shall give the chief or other official\nin charge of the fire department or company within whose territorial\njurisdiction the proposed prescribed burn is located an opportunity to\nreview and comment on the written prescribed burn management plan.\n (f) No burning shall be prescribed under this subdivision within\nseventy-five feet of the boundary of a landowner's property without the\nwritten approval of the adjacent landowner. In addition, the department\nmay prohibit burning in a buffer zone in excess of seventy-five feet\nfrom the boundary of an adjacent property owner if specific conditions\nat the site warrant such buffer.\n