Outdoor burning rules in Erie County, NY — also called the burn ban, open burning, or fire restriction ordinance — set when you can burn yard waste, debris, or run a recreational fire.
New York bans residential brush burning statewide from March 16 through May 14, and burning trash is illegal year-round. Erie County follows these DEC rules; larger towns cannot burn brush at all.
Outdoor burning in Erie County is governed by NY DEC regulation 6 NYCRR Part 215. Residential brush burning is prohibited statewide during the high-risk period of March 16 through May 14 each year. Outside that window, on-site burning of small brush (limbs under six inches diameter and eight feet long) is allowed only in towns with fewer than 20,000 residents, which excludes Erie County's larger towns and the City of Buffalo. Burning garbage, leaves, tires, and other solid waste is illegal everywhere in the state at all times. Burn barrels are prohibited. Small recreational campfires and cooking fires using clean wood or charcoal remain permitted year-round. Towns may impose stricter rules or require a local permit.
DEC can issue penalties for illegal open burning, including burning during the ban or burning trash; violations may carry fines and cleanup liability. Local fire officials also enforce.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Erie County, NY
Animal hoarding in Erie County is investigated by the SPCA Serving Erie County and prosecuted as cruelty by the Erie County District Attorney's Animal Cruelt...
Erie County, NY
The Erie County Department of Health treats improper bird and wildlife feeding as a rodent attractant and public-health nuisance and investigates complaints ...
Erie County, NY
Erie County does not license cats, but New York law requires every cat to be rabies-vaccinated, and the county Health Department runs free rabies clinics for...
Erie County, NY
Erie County sets no numeric limit on household pets. Any cap on the number of dogs or cats comes from a town, city, or village ordinance, while state law req...
Erie County, NY
Erie County imposes no countywide livestock ordinance. Keeping cattle, horses, goats, pigs, or other farm animals is controlled by each town, city, or villag...
Erie County, NY
Backyard composting is legal and encouraged in Erie County. The county has no mandate or ban on home composting; nuisance and setback details, if any, come f...
See how Erie County's outdoor burning rules stack up against other locations.
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.