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Outdoor burn ban lifted

Permits required before burning, though

Metro Atlanta’s annual outdoor burning ban, enacted throughout the metro area to help with air quality, has been lifted beginning today.

That means residents can go back to burning their leaves, tree limbs or other yard waste along with vegetative waste from land clearing ... as long as a permit is secured from the appropriate local fire department.

Callers to all agencies will be informed if burning will be allowed. In some cases weather conditions such as wind and lack of precipitation for a number of days make it too unsafe to allow outdoor burning, officials said.

During summer, ozone in the air can reach unhealthy levels and open burning is a significant contributor to the pollutants that form ozone, officials said.

And as development around Atlanta continues, the problem of outdoor burning in the summer months gets even larger, according to the EPD.

While the ban has led to more solid waste entering the system, the benefits to summer air quality resulting from the burning ban are substantial, officials said.

Instead of burning yard trimmings and land clearing debris, residents are encouraged to use leaves, brush, grass clippings, shrubs and tree prunings along with vegetative residuals by composting.