Council considers changing fire pit laws

Council could permanently change Brisbane’s fire pit laws after a petition forced amendments to rules banning backyard braziers in May, with Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner calling on residents to have their say on the issue.

Fire pits put most people at risk of a $266 fine under Brisbane City Council rules.

Council could permanently change Brisbane’s fire pit laws after a petition forced amendments to rules banning backyard braziers in May.

A trial permitting fire pits commenced in June after public outrage began when Brisbane locals started receiving fines in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A Kedron man began a petition in May to have council rethink their rules on fire pits that put most people at risk of a $266 fine for lighting one.

Darren Mitchell’s petition attracted almost 1000 signatures overnight in May after he discovered backyard fires were prohibited unless they had a permit or met specific guidelines.

It comes following an incident in April, which saw an Oxley mum and her children forced to extinguish their fire pits while they were cooking marshmallows at their home in April.

The three-month long winter trial saw Council adopt a ‘more commonsense’ approach to fire pit policing, allowing more freedoms surrounding backyard fires.

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner has called on Brisbane residents to show their support for the trial if they want the changes to remain.

“By all reports, the trial has been very warmly received, but residents need to hit Facebook or our council website to register their support if they want to keep the fires burning in the future,” he said.

Council would weigh up public feedback after the trial, which began on June 1, ends tonight.

“If you’ve got into your backyard brazier or fire pit gatherings, then you need to let us know by email, phone call or social media that you want this to happen again.”

Throughout the trial period, no warnings or infringements were issued.

City Standards, Community Health and Safety Chair Kim Marx said the trial was launched with a number of strict guidelines around safety and minimising smoke.

“Residents have really demonstrated they can use their fire pits and brazier safely and responsibly,” she said.

“The safety of residents is our priority and these stringent guidelines have helped residents keep their fire pits safe, in control while minimising smoke impacts on neighbours”.

Residents were previously prohibited from lighting and maintaining fires in the open air unless they were approved for theatrical purposes, cooking food for human consumption

or were permitted by the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services.

Prior to the commencement of the trial, Opposition Community spokeswoman Councillor Kara Cook urged Council to expand its consultation process to include experts in the field, including medical staff who dealt with burns and respiratory conditions.

Following this request, Ms Marx has partnered with Kidsafe Queensland to today announce a video to teach children and parents about fire safety.

“Fires left to burn out overnight can still be 100 degrees the next morning leading to a risk of severe burns, so there’s a range of key messages in the video warning of the dangers of unsupervised kids around fire pits,”

Residents are encouraged to visit Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner and Brisbane City Council’s social media sites to vote on whether the trial should be made permanent before it ends tonight.