People wanting to make the most of Central Otago's open fire season and burn material outdoors are being warned by the Otago Regional Council not to breach stringent air plan regulations.
ORC resource management director Selva Selvarajah said the regional council could prosecute people for burning material outdoors regardless of whether they had a permit from other local authorities.
An open burning season came into effect throughout Central Otago on May 15, following the end of a restricted fire season.
The season applies to all areas of the district outside a 1km radius of Department of Conservation land and the Naseby Forest, and permits to burn inside such fire safety margins must be obtained from relevant fire authorities such as the Central Otago District Council.
But Dr Selvarajah said if permitted fires produced smoke breaching the ORC's air plan or were deemed a nuisance by neighbours those responsible could face legal action.
"It won't be tolerated," Dr Selvarajah said.
"If we get any complaints we will look at taking legal action.
"Regional air plan rules apply 365 days of the year and we can prosecute, regardless of whether people have local district permits, if they are breaching our rules by burning," Dr Selvarajah said.
Owners of residential and rural properties faced ORC restrictions on outdoor burning, and people wanting to fight frosts had to be particularly careful of stringent rules regarding burning material, methods, and resulting air pollution, he said.
The council generally responded to complaints rather than actively monitoring smoke across Otago, although staff could prompt legal action if they discovered nuisance smoke or prohibited materials being burnt, he said.
To date, the council has received 18 complaints about backyard burning from throughout Otago.
It is prosecuting a Central Otago orchardist for allegedly burning tyres to fight frost on a property last winter.
Dr Selvarajah said the council was waiting for a court hearing date to be set for the case.
It was the ORC's only prosecution relating to air pollution at present.
It was not the council's policy to disclose the identity of people being prosecuted, he said.
