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Part II .

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Forest Fire Protection Regulations

made under

Section 40 of the

Forests Act

R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 179

O.I.C. 2019-248 (effective September 17, 2019), N.S. Reg. 135/2019

amended to O.I.C. 2025-182 (effective June 17, 2025), N.S. Reg. 119/2025

Table of Contents

Please note: this table of contents is provided for convenience of reference and does not form part of the regulations.

Click here to go to the text of the regulations .

Citation

Definitions

Fire season prescribed

Domestic burning defined

Domestic burning permit for each county announced

Burn day authorized burning

Restricted burn day authorized burning

Non-burn day

Special event burning permit

Industrial burning defined

Industrial burning permit

Municipal landfill sites

Suspended or cancelled permit to burn

Fire fighting equipment based on number of persons employed at site

Fire fighting equipment for Class 1 and Class 2 machinery

Fire fighting equipment available and in working order

Operating power saw or clearing saw on forest lands during fire season

Portion of fine paid for information

Citation

1 These regulations may be cited as the Forest Fire Protection Regulations .

Definitions

(1) In the Act and these regulations,

“burn” means to set, start, kindle, ignite or maintain a fire;

“fire” means combustion or burning, in which substances combine chemically with

oxygen from the air and typically give out bright light and heat.

(2) In these regulations,

“ABC fire extinguisher” means an ABC fire extinguisher of a type approved by the

Canadian Standards Association or the Underwriters Laboratories of Canada;

“Act” means the Forests Act ;

“campfire” means an open fire that burns no larger than 0.5 m in diameter and is

intended for recreation, but does not include a fire set for survival;

“designated” means designated under

Section 5;

“domestic burning” means domestic burning as defined in

Section 4;

“domestic burning permit” means a permit to burn in the form of a public

announcement in accordance with

Section 5 that authorizes domestic burning;

“extinguished” means to fully put out a fire such that there is no bright light, heat

or smoke and the embers are cool to the touch throughout with no chance of

reigniting;

“flammable debris” means waste material that is at risk of igniting or spreading

fire, including loose paper, cured grass and logging slash;

“forest protection area” means in the woods or within 1000 ft (305

m) of the

woods, as specified in the Act;

“industrial burning permit” means a permit to burn that authorizes the holder to

carry out industrial burning as defined in

Section 9;

“online mapping tool” means an online map of the Province on the Department’s

Forest Protection website that depicts each county and the domestic burning permit

issued for each county;

“operation or activity” means any work carried out and includes a construction

project, industrial project or forestry operation;

“permit to burn” means a permit issued under the Act and these regulations that

authorizes a person to carry out domestic burning, special event burning or

industrial burning.

Fire season prescribed

3 Except as otherwise modified by the Minister under subsection 23(2) of the Act, the

period from March 15 to October 15, both dates inclusive, is prescribed as the fire

season for all counties in the Province.

Domestic burning defined

4 In these regulations, “domestic burning” means burning, for no remuneration, tree limbs,

leaves, brush or cut grass that meets any of the following criteria:

(

a) the material being burned is in no more than 2 piles, each of which is no

wider than 3 m in diameter and no taller than 2 m;

(

b) it is a campfire;

(

c) it is carried out while burning for blueberry crops within an area smaller

than or equal to 2 ha.

Domestic burning permit for each county announced

(1) Each day during a fire season, the Minister or a person delegated by the Minister

must publicly announce the domestic burning permitted in each county of the

Province, by designating the day as 1 of the following:

(

a) burn day;

(

b) restricted burn day;

(

c) non-burn day.

(2) A day designated under subsection (1) means the 18-hour period between 2 p.m. of

that day to 8 a.m. on the following day unless otherwise authorized by the Minister

or a person designated by the Minister.

(3) A public announcement required by subsection (1) must be published on the online

mapping tool and be available by telephone through the Department’s toll-free

phone number.

Burn day authorized burning

6 In addition to any restrictions or conditions in

Section 27 of the Act, on a designated

burn day, domestic burning is permitted in the forest protection area only if all of the

following conditions are met:

(

a) piles of material to be burned are at least 10 m apart;

(

b) the fire is extinguished by 8 a.m. on the morning following the ignition of

the fire.

Restricted burn day authorized burning

7 In addition to any restrictions or conditions in

Section 27 of the Act, on a designated

restricted burn day, domestic burning is permitted in the forest protection area only if all

of the following conditions are met:

(

a) piles of material to be burned are at least 10 m apart;

(

b) burning occurs only during the restricted time period specified in the

domestic burning permit public announcement.

Non-burn day

8 On a designated non-burn day, there is no permit to burn issued.

Special event burning permit

8A

(1) A permit authorizing a person to ignite and maintain an open fire for the purpose

of a special event may be issued by the Minister or a person authorized by the

Minister to a person who applies in the form required by the Minister.

(2) A special event burning permit must be issued in writing and may include any

considers appropriate.

(3) A special event burning permit must not be issued unless the Minister or a person

authorized by the Minister is satisfied that it is safe and reasonable under the

circumstances to do so.

Industrial burning defined

9 In these regulations, “industrial burning” means burning that meets any of the following

criteria:

(

a) it is carried out by a person for remuneration;

(

b) it is carried out for land-clearing or agricultural purposes, including burning

for blueberries within an area larger than 2 ha;

(

c) the material being burned is in more than 2 piles of any size;

(

d) the material being burned is wider than 3 m in diameter or taller than 2 m;

(

e) the fire is not extinguished by 8:00 a.m. of the morning following the

ignition of the fire.

Industrial burning permit

(1) The fee for an industrial burning permit is $54.17, plus any applicable taxes.

(2) A person authorized or designated by the Minister to issue an industrial burning

permit must complete any returns that the Minister directs, and must remit to the

Minister all money received from the sale of industrial burning permits less any

amount allowed by the Minister by way of commission.

Municipal landfill sites

(1) An industrial burning permit may be issued to a municipality that operates a

municipal land fill site, for the purpose of operating the landfill site, for a period of

time equivalent to the fire season for the county where the landfill site is located.

(2) Despite subsection (1) and in addition to any other conditions that may be

imposed, an industrial burning permit issued under subsection (1) may contain any

conditions respecting suspension or cancellation of the permit that the permit issuer

considers necessary for the adequate protection from and control of forest fires.

Suspended or cancelled permit to burn

(1) In subsection 23(8) of the Act,

“fire permit” means a permit to burn;

“permit holder” includes a person acting on that person’s behalf.

(2) A permit holder must surrender to the Department, on request, any permit to burn

issued to them that has been suspended or cancelled.

Fire fighting equipment based on number of persons employed at site

14 Except where the Department has prescribed or approved specific alternatives, the fire

fighting equipment required to be provided and maintained under subsection 27(4) of the

Act by a person in charge of an operation or activity conducted in the forest protection

area during the fire season, based on the number of persons employed at the site of the

operation, is as follows:

Required equipment for fire fighting**

Total number of persons employed at

site of operations*

1-2

3-5

6-10

11-20

21+

Any combination of axe, Pulaski or shovels

Back tanks or bags with pump and nozzle

*The total number includes individuals operating heavy equipment and machinery.

**This total does not include the equipment affixed to Class I or Class II machines.

Fire fighting equipment for Class 1 and Class 2 machinery

(1) In this Section,

“Class 1 machine” means a farm tractor, a skidder, a forwarder, a roadside slasher,

a roadside delimber, a loader, a wood transporting vehicle, road construction

equipment, a welding vehicle or an equipment servicing vehicle;

“Class 1 operation” means an operation or activity conducted during the fire season

in the forest protection area in which a Class 1 machine is used;

“Class 2 machine” means a chipper, a feller buncher, a wood harvester or a wood

processor;

“Class 2 operation” means an operation or activity conducted during the fire season

in the forest protection area in which a Class 2 machine is used.

(2) A person in charge of Class 1 operation or a Class 2 operation must ensure that all

of the following equipment is securely affixed to the machines used in the

operation as set out in the following table:

Class of machine

Equipment to be affixed to machine

Class 1

1 5-lb (2.25 kg) ABC fire extinguisher, fully charged and

equipped with pressure gauges

2 2.5-lb (1.13 kg) ABC fire extinguishers, fully charged

and equipped with pressure gauges

Class 2, equipped

with on-board

suppression system

1 10-lb (4.54 kg) ABC fire extinguisher, fully

charged and equipped with pressure gauges

2 5-lb (2.25 kg) ABC fire extinguishers, fully

charged and equipped with pressure gauges

1 back tank pump unit containing no less than 18 L

of water

an additional 10-lb (4.54 kg) ABC fire

extinguisher, fully charged and equipped with

pressure gauges

Class 2, not

equipped with on-board suppression

system

1 20-lb (9 kg) ABC fire extinguisher, fully charged

and equipped with pressure gauges

2 10-lb (4.54 kg) ABC fire extinguishers, fully

charged and equipped with pressure gauges

1 back tank pump unit containing no less than 18 L

of water

an additional 20-lb (9 kg) ABC fire extinguisher,

fully charged and equipped with pressure gauges

(3) In addition to the requirements of subsection (2), every person in charge of a Class

2 operation must have a 2-way communication system available at the operations

site.

Fire fighting equipment available and in working order

16 A person in charge of an operation or activity conducted in the forest protection area

during the fire season must ensure that all fire fighting equipment required to be kept at

the site of the operations is, at all times,

(

a) readily available; and

(

b) kept in proper working order.

Operating power saw or clearing saw on forest lands during fire season

(1) A person must not operate a power saw or clearing saw in the forest protection

area during the fire season unless the power saw is equipped with an exhaust

muffler in functional condition and the adequate spark arresting device required by

subsection 27(4) of the Act.

(2) A person who operates a power saw or clearing saw in the forest protection area

during the fire season must keep an ABC fire extinguisher containing not less than

0.5 lb. (0.225 kg) of dry chemical at the site where the person refuels the power

saw.

Portion of fine paid for information

(1) If a complaint is laid and information provided by a person other than a

conservation officer, the Minister may pay the complainant an amount of up to 1/2

of any fine collected for a prosecution for a violation of the Act or the regulations

resulting from the complaint and information.

(2) If a complaint is laid by a conservation officer on information provided by another

person other than a conservation officer, the Minister may pay the person who

provided the information an amount of up to 1/4 of any fine collected for a

prosecution for a violation of the Act or the regulations resulting from the

information.

Legislative History

Reference Tables

Forest Fire Protection Regulations

N.S. Reg.

135/2019

Forests Act

Note: The

information in these tables does not form part of the regulations and is

compiled by the Office of the Registrar of Regulations for reference only.

Source Law

The current consolidation of the Forest Fire Protection Regulations made

under the Forests Act includes all

of the following regulations:

N.S.

Regulation

In force

date*

How in force

Royal Gazette

Part II Issue

135/2019

Sep 17, 2019

date specified

Oct 11, 2019

118/2025

Jun 17, 2025

date specified

Jun 27, 2025

119/2025

Jun 17, 2025

date specified

Jun 27, 2025

The following regulations are not yet in force and are

not included in the current consolidation:

N.S.

Regulation

In force

date*

How in force

Royal Gazette

Part II Issue

*See subsection 3(6) of the Regulations Act for

rules about in force dates of regulations.

Amendments by Provision

ad. = added

am. = amended

fc. = fee change

ra. = reassigned

rep. = repealed

rs . = repealed and substituted

Provision affected

How affected

2(2), defn . of “permit to

burn” ........

am. 118/2025 1

8(2) ..................................................

rep. 118/2025

8A ....................................................

ad. 118/2025

10(1) ................................................

am. 119/2025

Note that changes to headings are not

included in the above table.

Editorial Notes and Corrections

Note

Effective

date

Amending instruction in N.S. Reg. 118/2025 specifies

amendment to the s. 3 definition of “permit to burn”, which does not exist.

Amendment made to the definition of “permit to burn” in s. 2(2) for the

purposes of this consolidation.

S. 8(2) repealed by N.S. Reg. 118/2025. S. 8(1)

redesignated as s. 8 for the purposes of this consolidation.

Repealed and Superseded

N.S.

Regulation

Title

In force

date

Repealed

date

55/1987

Forest Fire Protection Regulations

Apr 1, 1987

Sep 17, 2019

Note: Only

regulations that are specifically repealed and replaced appear in this

table. It may not reflect the entire

history of regulations on this subject matter.