The district is renowned for its clear skies and panoramic views, but at this time of year, some of those vistas are obscured by smoke lingering from outdoor burning, Otago Regional Council regional services director Jeff Donaldson says.
''Our Central Otago skies are fantastic and a drawcard to visitors.
Everyone wants to look at the mountains and admire our big skies and the beautiful environment. But we're covering those views in smoke, which is not good for the locals, not good for tourism and not good for the health of the residents in the area.
''This form of air pollution could wreck Central Otago's reputation for big sky landscapes,'' he said.
The problem areas were Alexandra, Clyde and Cromwell and the smoke was mostly from orchardists and lifestyle block owners burning prunings on their properties, Mr Donaldson said.
The regional council had received a spate of complaints about outdoor burning in Central Otago recently, fielding 15 complaints during the past four weeks. That figure was almost half the Central Otago total for a whole year.
For the year ending June 30, 2013, the council received a total of 34 Central Otago complaints about outdoor burning, Mr Donaldson said.
They were mostly about green waste being burnt on orchards and lifestyle blocks.
A further 12 complaints were received in that time about ''backyard burning'' - people in urban areas lighting fires outdoors.
''People seem to think that when there is an open fire season, they can burn garden rubbish outdoors as of right, but that's not the case.''
Under the regional air plan, in an open fire season, people had to make sure a fire was 50m from any boundary and the smoke must not cause a nuisance to neighbours or become a traffic hazard.
''Lighting a fire outdoors when you've got a low inversion layer is diabolical. People think it's ideal to light it, if it's a still day, but they're not looking at the big picture, and realising that still day is combined with a low inversion layer,'' he said.
''You might be burning on your block at Earnscleugh, for example, but does that mean everyone in Alexandra has to wear it [the smoke] because of the low inversion layer?''
The recent complaints had been sparked by landowners burning orchard prunings and sometimes silage wrap and old tyres were added to the bonfires, which caused even more air pollution. Anyone breaching the regional air plan could be fined $300, Mr Donaldson said.
''It's fair to say that we're getting less tolerant of these breaches, so you can expect more fines to be issued.''
Chipping green waste was an alternative way of disposing of it in a more environmentally friendly manner, he said.
