By Tara Fischer

Staff Writer

(Aug. 27, 2026) Berlin’s outdoor burning policy is going back to the drawing board after residents shared concerns that the proposed code revisions don’t include an exception for large properties that need an efficient way to reduce yard and storm debris.

The Town of Berlin is looking to tighten its outdoor burning ordinance. At Monday night’s Town Council meeting, the group held a public hearing and overhauled the proposed document before addressing citizen comments. The revisions suggested this week polished the code’s language to clarify that open burning is not allowed in Berlin.

However, after those edits, residents asked that a pathway be carved out for large-acreage parcels that rely on open burning to clear immense accumulations of yard debris or natural storm wreckage. After hearing those worries, the council agreed to put the outdoor fire policy back on the agenda next month for a first reading, incorporating the governing team’s amendments made Monday night and a potential provision for vast tracts of land.

Ryan Hardesty, the town’s planning director, said at the Aug. 10 council meeting that the outdoor burning review process began several months ago after questions arose as to whether fire pits were permitted within municipal limits.

At that meeting, a broader discussion revealed that the council supported completely outlawing open burning, otherwise known as the uncontained burning of yard waste, yard debris, land-clearing debris, and household trash. This move would eliminate the code’s existing exceptions that allow property owners to secure permits for these kinds of activities.

However, per this week’s discussion, Berlin could add open burning back into its updated fire ordinance with strict parameters.

The issue stems from resident Ed Hammond, who said he relies on about one open burn a year to maintain his 30-acre property.

“I may be in a relatively unique situation in town where I have an agricultural property…I have 30 acres, and it generates a lot of debris and I need to get rid of it,” he said.

Hammond noted that his family has conducted open burns for years and receives official approval from Worcester County to do so. He added that while he could theoretically push his yard waste back into the woods and forgo any fires, that would open the area to the spread of invasive species.

“You might say, ‘why don’t you push that stuff back into the woods?’ Maybe 40 or 50 years ago, before we had the invasive species that we have now, it was easier to push materials in the woods and forget about it,” he said. “I can still cut up and let material lie on the forest floor if it’s in a well-shaded area, but most areas are not shaded…I can’t just push material back into the woods and hope it goes away because it becomes a scaffold for invasive species to grow on and it becomes a large problem for the land because the wood doesn’t break down fast enough before the wisteria, whatever it is…gets on it and starts going.”

Councilman Jack Orris read a statement sent to him by resident Tony Weeg who suggested how open burning exceptions may be handled.

Open burn permits could be made for properties over a certain size, capped at four parcels a year, Weeg said. He added that to guarantee safety, first responders could be on-site during the burn.

“[The proposed ordinance] treats residents with a two-foot brush pile the same as a property owner sitting on acres of wooded land who loses his trees every storm season,” Orris said, reciting Weeg’s statement. “…The people using the exception are exactly those we should permit. A blanket ban punishes them to solve a problem they aren’t actually causing.”

While Monday’s discussion largely centered on open burning, the council also agreed to axe language in the code that would limit recreational bonfires to 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Bonfires would now be allowed anytime.

Because the council heavily modified the proposed outdoor burning ordinance Monday night, the group agreed to table the document. Town attorney David Gaskill will revise the code with the council’s amendments and include a summary of how a provision may be incorporated to address the unique requirements of large parcels.

The code will return for a first reading at the Berlin Town Council’s meeting on Sept. 14.