Residents will soon have new guidelines to abide by when planning to burn waste within city limits.
The council is set to approve an ordinance in November that would prohibit residents from burning anything but yard waste, defined as "grass clippings, weeds, prunings and flower cuttings, hedge trimmings and tree limbs from residences or businesses." Under the proposed ordinance, it will be illegal to burn furniture, paper, garbage and tires.
Other stipulations of the draft include:
•All fires must be at least 20 feet away from any building, structure or property line.
•Only leaves may be burned in ditches, and they must be burned within 24 hours of placement in the ditch "in order to prevent culverts from becoming blocked."
•Firefighting material sufficient to contain any fire must be on site at the time of the blaze, and must be monitored in case containment becomes necessary.
Councilman Mike Bickel brought the issue up Oct. 8, and said during Tuesday night's meeting that he approved of the draft ordinance prepared by City Clerk Missy Hooks.
"As far as I'm concerned, it looks great and I'm ready to pass it," Bickel said.
The ordinance will be on the agenda for the council's Nov. 12 meeting.