Fire Season

We’ve all heard of landfill fires causing wildfires, but did you know wildfires can catch your landfill on fire? How dare they?!

But wait! There are things you can do to both prepare your landfill against a wildfire and to prevent your landfill from causing a wildfire.

Prepare and Plan

• Clear all brush and dead vegetation within 50 feet of the landfill perimeter
• Clear all vegetation within 10 feet of the burn area
• No burning may take place during a statewide or local burn ban, unless authorized by your Division of Forestry Area Office or the Alaska Fire Service 907-356-5511
• Create a plan for how you will manage waste if there is a long-term burn ban. Unburned waste takes up significantly more volume
• Do you have enough landfill space?
• Do you have enough space in your trench or should you dig a new one?
• Gather or purchase fire suppression material. It must be at the landfill during any burn. This could be fire extinguishers, wildland fire pump, firefighting skid sprayer, etc.

Burning

• No burning trash on the ground unless your landfill permit specifically allows for controlled burning in a trench
• All burning must be conducted in a fully-functional burn unit or in a designated trench as allowed by the landfill permit. Damage to any burn unit components must be repaired as soon as practical
• Do not store waste within 25 feet of the burn unit (or trench) as it could catch fire
• Keep waste as dry as possible using a cover or storage facility
• Separate household hazardous waste and other materials that should not be burned, including pressurized containers (aerosol cans, ammunition, propane cylinders, etc.), from garbage that will be burned. All material that cannot be burned should be disposed separately at the working face (main disposal area) or collected and backhauled to an appropriate disposal or recycling facility
• Only the landfill operator may light the burn and must remain at the landfill or burn area until the burning is complete
• Only burn during favorable weather with wind blowing away from the community; do not burn in high winds
• Do not allow waste to smolder and ensure that ash is completely cool before placing at the working face

More Information

Review our Operational Guidance document section 2.0 Burning for more information on safe burning practices.