Lower Paxton, PA Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Article IV of Chapter 106 of the Lower Paxton Township Code was adopted 6-18-2024 by Ord. No. 22-04. It defines open burning as the burning of materials where products of combustion are emitted directly into the ambient air without passing through a stack or chimney from an enclosed chamber. Under § 106-24(A), nobody can kindle, maintain or authorize open burning unless it is conducted and approved in accordance with the section, and the open burning of refuse and recyclable materials, including leaf waste, as described in Chapter 165 of the Township's Codified Ordinances, is flatly prohibited.

Section 106-24(B) widens the ban. The burning of garbage, rubbish, rags, bones, leaves, paper and other trash in cans, barrels, outdoor fireplaces, drums or metal containers, incinerators or in the open is prohibited, and so is any burning of any item that is offensive or objectionable because of smoke emissions. Burning is also prohibited when atmospheric conditions or local circumstances make any fires hazardous. The ordinance declares such acts nuisances, which gives the Township a second enforcement route beyond the fine.

The article carves out one category, the recreational fire, which is a small fire of three feet or less in diameter and two feet or less in height for pleasure, religious, ceremonial, cooking or warmth purposes. Section 106-25 allows those without a permit but only under its own conditions, including a ban on burning trash, leaves and yard trimmings. A fire in a burn container must be in a noncombustible container with no holes greater than one inch, covered by wire mesh or another noncombustible cover to stop fly ash from escaping.

Under § 106-26, any Township police officer or fire official assigned by the Township Manager enforces the article.