To Burn or Not to Burn

That is the question. And I guess it depends whom you ask or which day you call, as to whether it is legal to burn in McHenry County.

On April 3rd there was a controlled burn at The Sanctuary in Bull Valley. A trained fire crew was managing the fire; the foreman said they had a permit and said they had picked a day when the wind was blowing north, away from the expensive homes in The Sanctuary. They had even put out small, temporary warning signs on Country Club Road.

Of course, the heavy, white smoke was blowing across Country Club Road, creating a health hazard for anyone with respiratory disorder who happened to drive by.

When I called the McHenry County Health Department, I was told that burning was not illegal if it was more than 500' from a dwelling. (Is the correct distance 100'?)

And then yesterday the McHenry County Conservation Department had a huge - I mean, HUGE - fire going in a fen on the west side of Pyott Road south of Lake in the Hills Airport, which produced heavy smoke that blew east across Pyott Road. The smoke was so heavy that an MCCD patrol vehicle was stopped on the southbound shoulder of Pyott Road, presumably to halt traffic if smoke became so heavy that drivers could not see the car ahead!

I again called the County Health Department. Although I explained the fire was well off the road and a police officer, which I misidentified as a Lake in the Hills officer, was on the scene, I was met with questions about safety and welfare and the suggestion to call 9-1-1. Why would I call 9-1-1 to report a fire, if law enforcement is already on the scene? I was told the Department has "processes". Man, we'll all be dead if we wait for their "processes!"

And then in this morning's Northwest Herald, reporter Regan Foster wrote a fine article about how there had been no reports of open burning made to the Health Department last week-end. Regan wrote that "Burning is allowed on week-ends between dawn and dusk, during April, May, October and November."

This restricts residents and their burning of landscape waste. What about MCCD and its "controlled" burn in its fen? Is it permissible for a governmental entity to produce health-impairing smoke when it wants to clear out the weeds?

Should MCCD be fined big-time? You bet!

Will there even be an investigation? Not likely, based on my complaint yesterday.