A late summer drought on P.E.I. has the provincial government warning that despite the turning of the season burn bans are still in place in all three counties.
Only 16.7 mm of rain has fallen at Charlottetown Airport so far this month. The normal amount for September is 95.3 mm. The last day more than five millimetres of rain fell at Charlottetown Airport was Sept. 7, and before that, you have to go back to Aug. 20.
“The ground is really dry and when we have that it increases our fire danger risk. Usually, we don’t see these kinds of situations this time of year, ” said Nicholas Thompson of provincial forests, fish and wildlife.
“Our drought codes, when we talk about fire, are in the extreme levels.”
And that means domestic brush burning is banned. Campfires are still allowed, but Thompson recommends keeping them small and well supervised.
In lieu of burning, Thompson said brush can be taken to an Island Waste Management site.
“Leaving it is always another option as well,” said Thompson.
“There are certain wildlife that utilize that, those little brush piles.”
If you must burn, he said, it may be better to wait until after Nov. 15, when the Island’s fire season ends, and ideally wait until there is some snow cover.