Brown County Issues Burning Ban Amid Drought

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - Brown County Sheriffs Office issued a burning restriction Friday afternoon due to extremely dry conditions and drought affecting 46 percent of the state.

The ban includes no open burning of land, ditches or brush piles. The sheriff's Office says recreational campfires are permitted but must be contained in a ring of either rock, cement, brick or metal, and must not be closer than 25 feet to any structure.

Charcoal grills, wood smokers, and propane or natural gas devices are not considered open burning.

Humidity levels dropping below 20 percent and high wind gusts in the Brown County area also contribute to the ban.

Brown County like many other regions of Minnesota has received very limited measurable precipitation over the past several weeks.