Dorset Council is seeking agreement to look at measures prohibiting or controlling the use of disposable barbecues and other fire-related activities in the area.
In recent years, there have been a number of incidents of fire damage across Dorset as a result of disposable barbecues, bonfires close to heathland and dry wooded areas, the release of sky lanterns and other social activities.
The most serious of these incidents was the recent fire at Wareham Forest which affected 180 hectares of heathland and was declared a major incident by the Fire and Rescue Service.
Approval from Dorset Council’s Cabinet will be sought for council officers to work closely with Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service, and other key stakeholders, to look at a range of enforcement options, and other alternatives to control or prohibit barbecues and other fire-related activities.
Councillor Ray Bryan, Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel and Environment, said: “We were all saddened by the fire at Wareham Forest this spring. Not only was it devastating for the forest’s wildlife and habitat, it risked human life and would have been horrendous for the wider environment due to the resulting smoke.
“We need a consistent approach which works across the whole area to prevent this happening again. This is a complex issue, for example we cannot risk pushing the problem to land managed by organisations which may not have the resources or enforcement powers in place to prohibit activities which present a fire risk. We need an approach that works across the area.
“The development of the options paper would enable us to understand how we can work effectively to cover all areas. We know we have wider support amongst Dorset residents to introduce new measures to help prevent further devastating fires like the recent one in Wareham, so now it’s up to us to establish what we can do.”
If you see a fire in the countryside, report it immediately by calling 999.
Is it not possible to provide enforcement powers and ban the use of barbecues or lighting fires across the whole forest? We have seen how people ignore notices and announcements in the media. Asking nicely simply does not work. Fine heavily when anyone is caught. This might be a better deterrent.
The Forestry Commission lands already have by laws, as do the National Trust, so no new powers are required where their land is involved. The National Trust in my experience have volunteers and rangers who control their property. Is Wareham Forest not Forestry Commission land? In which case its a matter of coming to an agreement about how to enforce those by laws and making sure that the bylaws are known about and acted on. Other properties will still need some sort of bylaws or effective ranger services.
Most disposable things should be banned. They shouldn’t be sold or manufactured.
Time to start pressuring businesses into stopping selling the things. Praise those that comply, and publically shame those that don’t every time there is a fire.
I recently wrote to Tesco Head Office with the suggestion that single-use portable barbeques should no longer be sold in their stores or online. I suggested that this could be seen as a great PR gesture o their part. I received a very courteous telephone reply to the effect that at the present time Tesco has no intention of ceasing their sale. Maybe more pressure could be put on suppliers.
I have also signed the recent petition.
Glad to see some official action on this at last.
I started a petition when Wareham Forest was burning, to get single-use BBQs banned nationally. I researched before starting it and the last one someone tried was cancelled due to the general election! http://chng.it/gqFLT5cxsq
I just signed it and forwarded on to a few people, but there are very few signatures so far.
There was a petition started looking to ban the sale of disposable BBQs after the Wareham fire. It has nearly 15000 signatures. Just in case you weren’t aware of it, here’s the link for more info.
https://www.change.org/p/dorset-council-ban-disposable-bbqs-in-dorset
I agree with Nicola’s point above, especially as the council has declared and environmental and ecological emergency. We ought to be moving away from disposables
Lobby the government to Ban the import of disposable BBQs from other countries and use the poor standard of the product as the reason and that they are a high fire risk … whether they are used correctly or not they are not environmentally friendly the charcoal can be soaked in unknown chemicals and from unethical sources.
This has been a problem for years as outdoor eating and BBQ s have become widely popular.
Adding to your point (which I agree with) they produce toxic fumes which present a health hazard to those with allergies and breathing difficulties
Thanks everyone for your comments. I will forward on all of these. Claire
Today again in Lodmoor Country Park there is damage to a grassed area. A large party had taken place with 3 BBQs burning the grass. They put their litter in a black sack and left it next to the bin. Maybe they forgot foxes and rats live in the area
I think the government should be lobbied to ban the sale of disposable barbeques until October.
The use of disposable barbecues in Wareham forest and other woodland areas should most certainly be banned – the fire there was horrific.
However, to prohibit them entirely would prevent people from enjoying them responsibly on the beach, as many local people do in the summer – for instance at Ringstead – and we always take our rubbish home.
Do not spoil everyone’s enjoyment because of a few idiots. Would you close all the pubs because of a few drunken yobs causing mayhem?
Post-Covid, it’s important that democracy returns to normal and that banning people from doing things doesn’t become the ‘new norm’ for local and central government.
I agree!
Glad to hear the petition to ban disposable BBQs has over 15000 signatures. Great news yes I signed it too as I’m a volunteer litter picker on Poole beaches and harbour and see first hand how dangerous these cheap metal BBQs are when half buried in sand, often still very hot next day and they scar the environment each time one is used on the sand or land, nasty burn marks and heaps of charcoal lumps follow.