Advice for Landowners on Controlled Burns

This page gives controlled burn advice to farmers, landowners and businesses. Householders should visit our garden fires page instead.

Planning a controlled burn on your land?

Remember the burn period is between 1st November and 15th March – sunup to sundown.

Anyone found burning outside of the Burn Period (November to March) will be prosecuted and it could affect your single farm payments from Welsh Government.

Do not burn refuse waste. Burning refuse can result in prosecution from Natural Resources Wales, your Local Authority, or the Police.

To conduct a controlled burn you need to have a Burn Plan – you can find a Burn Plan on the Welsh Government website.

Even inside the Burn Period (November to March) you cannot burn between Sunset and Sunrise.

Plan your burn and have enough resources available to ensure it can be managed effectively and extinguished if required.

Follow these steps for a controlled burn:

1. ALWAYS inform us before a Controlled Burn and after a burn is complete. Contact our Controlled Burn hotline on 01268 909408.
2. Inform your neighbours and ensure that any livestock is in a safe place away from the fire path.
3. Consider cutting a ‘fire break’ to prevent fire spread. Only burn a small manageable area at a time.
4. Grass fires are extremely unpredictable and can spiral out of control within minutes.
5. Fire will travel uphill quicker and will burn more intensely than it does downhill.
6. IF YOU LIGHT IT DON’T LEAVE IT! It is your responsibility!

If the fire becomes dangerous and you and others are at risk, contact 999 in an emergency.