Burn Ban Request Procedure

Burn Ban Request Procedure. The State Forester or his designee shall have the authority to utilize all applicable indices, models or reports to assess the drought and/or extreme wildfire conditions. Should these conditions, in his judgment, constitute a serious threat, the State Forester or his designee shall notify the county Boards of Supervisors that these conditions exist and may request or recommend that the Boards of Supervisors enact a temporary ban in accordance with the statute on all outdoor burning or the type burns which are escaping and causing wildfires. The State Forester or his designee shall also notify the Boards of Supervisors when these conditions have abated. The State Forester or his designee will consider any request made by a Boards of Supervisors for a temporary burning ban which is made in accordance with established procedures. In order to assess the need for a request to a county Boards of Supervisors to implement a burning ban per Miss. Code Ann. §49-19-351 (Rev. 2003), or to evaluate a request from a county Boards of Supervisors for same, all applicable sources of information may be utilized. These sources may include, but are not limited to, some or all of the following models, indices, reports, forecasts or other pertinent information. Depending on the prevailing conditions, the relative importance or weight given to various items from each source of information may not be equal. A. Keetch-Bryam Drought Index (KDBI) B. Fire Spread Index C. Daily Fire Report D. Large Fire Activity E. Rainfall Deficit F. Fuel Moisture Readings G. Long and Short Range Weather Forecasts H. Analysis of Fire Causes If conditions indicate a need for a burning ban, the State Forester or his designee will contact the appropriate Forestry Commission District Office in the areas affected. The District Foresters or their designee will forward the information to the Boards of Supervisors in their respective Districts. If the Boards of Supervisors approves the recommended burning ban, they shall by order notify the Forestry Commission District Office. If the Boards of Supervisors wish to institute a ban, they will make a request in writing to their respective Mississippi Forestry Commission District Office. The request must outline, specifically, the reasons for requesting the ban and contain a specific period of time, beginning and ending, that the ban will be in effect. The District Forester will review the request and forward it to the State Forester with a written recommendation on whether the ban should be implemented. Requests will not be considered until the District Forester in the affected area is consulted and makes a recommendation on the request. The flow of information will either be down from the State Office to the District Offices to the Presidents of the Boards of Supervisors or up from the Boards of Supervisors President to the District Offices to the State Office. Should a ban be implemented by a Boards of Supervisors without following the provisions of Miss. Code Ann. §49-19-351(Rev. 2003) or the Mississippi Forestry Commission's (MFC) procedures to implement them, the responsibilities for those actions will fall on the Boards of Supervisors.