Campfires Are Already Banned All Summer
Crackling wood. The smell of smoke stuck in my hair. Sparks drifting up to a star-filled sky. These nighttime campfire rituals were a staple of my childhood camping experiences.
But no more.
The last time I had a wood-burning campfire while tent camping, it felt weird. It was 2023 in Jasper National Park, exactly one year before the flames of a raging wildfire drastically changed the Park I knew and loved.
Where I live now, just outside of Vancouver, BC, I’ve gotten so used to forgoing traditional log campfires that my partner and I bought a propane fire pit. When I shared our preference on explore’s social media, the response varied from environmental concerns to cultural defensiveness—what is camping in Canada without campfires?
I want us to do everything we can to reduce wildfires, but even I was surprised to see the blanket statement that campfires would be banned from May 7th to October 31st, unless rescinded earlier, across Coastal BC.
According to the BC Wildfire Service (BCWS), any open fire in Categories 1, 2, and 3 will be prohibited across the Coastal Fire Centre region as of 12 p.m. today. (Right now, the ban doesn’t apply to grills.) Fines could be up to $100,000.
About the news, BC Marine Trails posted on Instagram: “With low snow pack, and record breaking spring temperatures, the BC Wildfire Service has announced a campfire ban to come into effect this Thursday at noon for the Coastal Fire Centre. The Coastal Fire Centre covers the Lower Mainland, Sea-to-Sky corridor, Vancouver Island, the Central Coast and Haida Gwaii. The ban will apply to all open burning. More specifics to come in the following days from the Coastal Fire Centre. Help keep the places we all love safe from wild fire – for now, the only responsible campfire is no fire at all.”
Cloud9glamping posted: “As always, while disappointing, we support the campfire ban 100%. This early heatwave has left things very dry already. Hopefully we’ll get some rain soon and the ban will be lifted, but for now s’mores season is postponed.”
Campfire bans are increasingly common. According to David Webb in his article for explore magazine titled Campfires are Smoky, Stinky Nuisances and We Should Look for Alternatives, “Fine particulate pollution—anything smaller than 10 microns—can get into your eyes, lungs and even your bloodstream. Campfire smoke creates particulates as small as 2.5 microns. This means itchy eyes and coughing for some and much worse for others.”
He also writes, “In the 2010 BC Parks study of Goldstream, it was found that during campfire season experts were able to record local instances of 2.5-micron particulate pollution (known as PM2.5) that exceeded provincial safety guidelines. This dropped back to acceptable levels when campfire season closed.”
Craig Mitchell wrote in his article for explore magazine titled Forget Bears and the Boogeyman; It’s Your Campfire You Should Be Afraid Of, “A crackling fire and roasting marshmallows or hot dogs while basking in the glow of a campfire is a time-honoured tradition for many families. It can be a memory that lasts a lifetime, or it can be a disaster waiting to happen. The University of Utah Burn Center found that children are most likely to be burned when left unsupervised, particularly when parents are distracted with the set up or take down of the campsite. The Harbourview Injury Prevention & Research Center at the University of Washington found that campfires are the USA’s leading cause of children’s camping injuries. Just like any other tool, there’s an inherent level of risk involved; safety is determined by how you use it, and a campfire is no different.”
Last summer, my partner and I rented an RV and travelled around the Yukon and northern BC. Near the border, at Teslin Lake in the Yukon, my boyfriend chopped wood for a roaring fire in the designated pit. We stayed up late, letting the flicker of embers illuminate our faces as we told ghost stories and connected deeper around the campfire.
Only one day later and 480 kilometres away, just over the border in BC, we were told that we were banned from having a campfire at Liard River Hot Springs campground. As rain pounded the top of our RV, where we lay in bed reading side-by-side, I pondered the interesting contrast that comes with travelling over an invisible boundary. We were camping in what appeared to be the same flora and fauna. Is one restriction too strict, or the other too relaxed?
I understand, agree with and support the need for a campfire ban this summer in British Columbia. “We used to complain about rain and have campfires galore, and now, we’re just living in a giant tinder box. Now we have endless wildfires, and we beg for rain,” says my partner, Tavis, who grew up in the Lower Mainland.
Personally, this ban doesn’t change much for us. We’ll continue to bring our propane fire pit when and where it’s allowed—and when and where we can actually get a front-country camping reservation. The larger issue is securing a campsite feels more like winning the lottery or fighting for a concert ticket then simply registering for a piece of dirt.
Between open fire bans, crowded campsites and reservation woes, it’s difficult enough to secure a campsite in BC in summer—so we might not have to worry about having a campfire at all.
How does the campfire ban affect you? Comment below!
We need campfire bans in Ontario, the same as the ones In BC now in effect! There is only one planet to consider and the fires burning in our country and in Europe, out of control, decimating forests, killing animals is indefensible. We need strict laws and fines for people who have no respect for the environment and no respect for the air we ALL breathe. The lakes are being poisoned by ash and the PH balance destroyed. Carcinogens in wood smoke is taking a toll on humans and animals. What more proof do we need to stop this insanity?
Hi Janice, like the author, you likely have some lingering confusion: Campfire bans in BC prevent forest fires, particulate, hmm traffic not a factor…?
Ontario doesn’t have the same forest / fire profile.
Your article presents some (GROSSLY ERRONEOUS!!) dubitivity, There is no question the bans are necessary, the border have _what_ to do with it?
People across the province probably read your article, I think you should be a little more forceful, your article makes it seem like you’re trolling for people to “protest the ban”, or something. You can get a job fighting forest fires, some areas, you don’t even need to apply, just look unemployed, you’ll be out there in no time, but you’ll come back understanding the ban better. You’ll know that forest fires are almost impossible to put out (out in the mountains, dry, etc.)
Dru