You need to be aware of requirements and restrictions relating to the burning or rubbish or vegetation in urban areas, on the farm or at an industrial site.
Urban (backyard burning) | Farm waste | Vegetation | Industrial
Burning household rubbish
Burning household rubbish or greenwaste in your back yard is banned if you live in a Taranaki urban area on a property smaller than 5,000 square metres and serviced by weekly rubbish collections.
If your section is larger than 5,000 square metres, backyard burning is permitted, although it is still important to be considerate of others and avoid any adverse effects.
The ban does not apply to outdoor fires for cooking or heating, such as barbecues, hangi or braziers.
Click on place name for map showing boundaries of urban areas where the backyard burning ban applies.
| Urban areas where backyard burning ban applies - New Plymouth District | ||
|---|---|---|
| Urenui [JPG, 993 KB] | Onaero [JPG, 518 KB] | Waitara [JPG, 981 KB] |
| Lepperton [JPG, 547 KB] | Inglewood [JPG, 582 KB] | Egmont Village [JPG, 941 KB] |
| Bell Block [JPG, 472 KB] | New Plymouth [JPG, 577 KB] | NP East [JPG, 597 KB] |
| NP West [JPG, 572 KB] | Oakura [JPG, 533 KB] | Okato [JPG, 552 KB] |
| Urban areas where backyard burning ban applies - Stratford District | ||
| Midhirst [JPG, 556 KB] | Stratford [JPG, 561 KB] | |
| Urban areas where backyard burning ban applies - South Taranaki District | ||
| Opunake [JPG, 559 KB] | Kaponga [JPG, 510 KB] | Manaia [JPG, 550 KB] |
| Ohawe Beach [JPG, 531 KB] | Hawera [JPG, 987 KB] | Eltham [JPG, 524 KB] |
| Normanby [JPG, 527 KB] | Patea [JPG, 528 KB] | Waverly [JPG, 539 KB] |
The ban in these areas is in accordance with Rule 34 of the Regional Air Quality Plan for Taranaki, which became operative on 25 July 2011.
To report any problems with backyard burning, please contact:
New Plymouth District Council – phone 06 759 6060
Stratford District Council – phone 06 765 6099
South Taranaki District Council – phone 06 278 05552
Burning farm rubbish
Generally you can burn farm rubbish without requiring resource consent as long as:
- The rubbish is only from your own farm.
- It does not contain treated wood or sawdust, waste oil, tyres, or chlorinated plastics.
- You ensure that the smoke or fumes do not cause significant environmental effects or cause nuisance outside your property boundary.
It is important to be considerate of others:
- Allow vegetation to dry before burning.
- Keep fires at least 50 metres from a road or 100 metres from a highway or neighbouring house.
- Check the wind direction and strength before lighting a fire.
- Tyres or used oil cannot be burned in the open.
If it is unlikely that you can meet these requirements, you must apply for resource consent (air discharge permit).
Burning vegetation
If you need to burn farm vegetation, you can generally do so without resource consent, as long as smoke is minimised to avoid effects on other people, the environment, visibility, or traffic.
If you cannot meet these requirements you may have to take action to reduce the problem or stop the burning altogether, or you may need to apply for resource consent.
The Air Quality Plan for Taranaki contains guidelines for burning vegetation that will help you avoid problems and meet the conditions (see Appendix 9 of the Air Quality Plan [PDF, 72 KB]).
You may also need to consider restricted fire seasons or fire bans in place, or whether a permit is needed. See the Fire and Emergency New Zealand website www.checkitsalright.nz(external link) or call 0800 658 628 for information on fire seasons, bans, and to obtain a permit if required.
Burning industrial waste
Any burning of industrial waste, no matter where it takes place, requires a resource consent. Please contact the Taranaki Regional Council for more information.