Report raises prospect of fire pit ban in Saskatoon

A year after the issue was first raised at city hall, the Saskatoon Fire Department has put together a report for council on backyard fire pits.

Councillors heard concerns back in March 2016   from a mom who said smoke from neighbours’ fire pits was impacting her young son’s asthma.

At that time, council asked the fire department to put together a report, which has now been completed.

The report outlines four potential options for councillor to consider:

• Leave the current bylaw as-is
• Restrict backyard fires to certain times of the day
• Require people to get a permit before they have a fire
• Ban open-air fires within city limits

The fire department report notes there is nothing to suggest pits have been a safety concern, with no known case of a structure or wildland fire ever having been caused by one.

However, the report does cite environmental and health concerns associated with open-air fires on private property.

In particular, the report states that smoke from the fires can be harmful to people with heart or lung conditions, particularly children and the elderly.

The report will go before the city’s planning, development and community services committee on Monday.