Novi, MI Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Section 15-17 amends International Fire Code Section 307 for Novi. Section 307.1 bars kindling any open burning except as approved under Sections 307.1.1 through 307.5, and 307.1.1 prohibits open burning outright when weather or local conditions make it hazardous, with an exception only for prescribed burning authorized by the fire code official to reduce wildland fire risk. Section 307.2 requires a permit from the fire code official before lighting a fire for silvicultural, range or wildlife-management practices, disease or pest control, a bonfire, or a prescribed burn, with the application submitted by the landowner; a narrow exception lets a bonfire within 30 feet of a lake, no larger than 3 feet by 3 feet by 3 feet, proceed without a permit.

Section 307.2.1 requires prior approval from state or local air and water quality authorities where their laws apply. Section 307.3 lets the fire code official order any hazardous or unpermitted open burn extinguished immediately. Section 307.5.1 restricts fuel to seasoned dry firewood lit with a small amount of paper, expressly banning refuse, trash, tires, furniture, leaves, brush and similar materials as fuel, and bars using open burning for waste disposal. Prescribed burns carry their own permit track under Section 307.7, with a $50 residential/$150 commercial review fee, a 30-day permit term, 48-hour advance notice to the fire department and 24-hour notice to adjacent property owners. Violations of the fire code are governed by Section 15-16's amendment to Section 109.4.