As fire season deepens and expands, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources added southern Cass and Crow Wing counties to spring burn restrictions.
The state will not issue burning permits for brush or yard waste in these counties until the restrictions are lifted.
Restrictions remain in place for Anoka, Becker, Beltrami, Benton, northern Cass, Chisago, Clay, Clearwater, Douglas, Grant, Hennepin, Hubbard, Isanti, Itasca, Kanabec, Kittson, Koochiching, Lake of the Woods, Mahnomen, Marshall, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Norman, Otter Tail, Pennington, Polk, Pope, Ramsey, Red Lake, Roseau, Sherburne, Stearns, Stevens, Todd, Traverse, Wadena, Washington, Wilkin and Wright counties.
“Warm and dry conditions are key factors for wildfires, so we have to remain on alert about restricting open burning,” stated Casey McCoy, DNR fire prevention supervisor, in a news release. “These restrictions really do work: they’ve helped reduce wildfires by more than 30 percent over the past decade.”
McCoy encourages landowners to compost, chip or take brush to a collection site rather than burn it. For information on how to compost yard waste, visit https://bit.ly/2R8MP4a .
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People who burn debris will be held financially responsible if their fire escapes and burns other property, the release stated.
For information and daily updates on current fire risk and open burning restrictions, visit mndnr.gov/burnrestrictions .
