Leland officials hold public workshop for open burning ban

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - Leland town leaders brought in state officials Monday night to discuss parameters around a burn ban that went into effect in October.

Town of Leland Councilwoman Veronica Carter spoke about Leland’s ordinance that put a full stop to open burning for developers within town limits.

“This will be the first time any municipality in the state of North Carolina has tried this,” said Carter. “We realized that smoke, smoke changes direction depending on the wind... And so we wanted to ensure that we have more of a regional approach here in the northern part of the county.”

The ordinance currently only applies to open burning for land-clearing purposes and does not affect other forms of open burning.

Council enacted the ban after smoke from a massive burn along Highway 17 drifted into nearby neighborhoods.

The meeting was to discuss specifics on what the ban actually entails going forward; however, many residents raised frustrations that Leland’s leaders had taken too long to implement the ban.

“They agreed to all this building and all this burning to clear sites, which I understand... but they’re not thinking of our health,” said Leland resident Linda Lange.

“Everybody got real annoyed, then all of a sudden...Snap! We’re going to do an ordinance,” said another resident.

Leaders pushed back, stating that ordinances take time, and they wanted to make sure they got it right.

“We have thoroughly tried to work this, but we’re the first,” said Carter. “Think about it, there’s over five hundred municipalities in the state of North Carolina, and [the Department of Environmental Equality] said they did not know of any other municipality that had anything like this in the state.”

The ordinance carries a fine of up to $500 a day for developers who violate it.

While residents say they are grateful something is being done, many expressed hope that leaders will be more proactive in the future when it comes to the air they breathe.

“We love the area, we love the community,” said Lange. “There must be a way, a simple way, of notifying us before the burning.”