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About the Residential Indoor Wood Burning Bylaw

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Before you use a residential indoor wood-burning stove, fireplace, or furnace in the Metro Vancouver region you must provide a declaration to follow best burning practices. Eligible devices located within the Ur​ban Containment Boundary, must also be registered. Access the Declaration and Registration System​.​

​Residential Ind​​oor Wood Burning Bylaw 1303, 2020

In March 2020, the Metro Vancouver Regional District (MVRD) Board adopted the Residential Indoor Wood Burning Emission Regulation Bylaw 1303, 2020. This bylaw aims to reduce emissions from residential indoor wood burning and mitigate the impacts of wood smoke on health and the environment. The bylaw regulates the discharge of air contaminants from residential indoor wood burning appliances (devices) such as fireplaces, wood stoves, and furnaces. Its goals include:

  • Reducing harmful smoke emissions from wood-burning practices and devices.
  • ​Protecting community health and the environment.​

Requirements

Bylaw 1303 has been implemented in phases, with more stringent requirements in more densely populated areas to help reduce exposure to harmful smoke. The following are the current requirements:

  1. Follow Best Burning Practices
    • Best burning practices include:
      • ​​Use only clean, seasoned wood
      • ​ Don't let your fire smoulder
      •  Don't burn garbage, plastic, or treated wood
      • Inspect and maintain your device
      • ​​ ​Burn small and ​hot fires
  2. Seasonal Prohibition
    • A ban on using residential indoor wood burning devices is in effect annually from May 15 to September 15, with some exceptions.
  3. Declaration Requirements
  4. Registration Requirements
    • Residents within Metro Vancouver’s Urban Containment Boundary must register their devices with Metro Vancouver.
    • To qualify for registration, devices must meet emissions standards.
  5. Operational Restrictions
    • From September 2025, unregistered devices will be prohibited from operation except during emergencies or if the device is the sole source of heat.​

Frequently asked questions

  • Residential Indoor Wood Burning System
    • What is a residential indoor wood-burning device?

      A residential indoor wood-burning device is capable of burning solid fuel and includes fireplace inserts, woodstoves, pellet stoves, open hearth fireplaces, masonry heaters, and wood-burning furnaces.

      Fireplace Insert

      Fireplace insert

      Wood stove

      Wood stove

      Open fireplace

      Open fireplace

    • What am I required to do under Bylaw 1303?

      Before you use a residential indoor wood-burning device, you must:

      1. Submit a declaration of compliance with best burning practices

      If you own or operate a wood-burning device in the Metro Vancouver region, you must submit a declaration of compliance with best burning practices (see Schedule B) to the district director.

      2. Register the device if it is within the Urban Containment Boundary and it is eligible

      If a device address is within the Urban Containment Boundary, you must register it, if eligible, before use. Click here to check if an address is within the Urban Containment Boundary.

      Not all devices are eligible for registration. Eligibility for registration is set out in Part 4 of the bylaw and includes:

      • devices that are the sole source of heat,
      • devices that are operated exclusively with manufactured firelogs and
      • devices that meet the emission standards prescribed in Schedule A of the Bylaw.

      You will be asked to submit additional information in the Residential Indoor Wood Burning System to support your registration.

      Sample supporting documents for registration include:

      • certification marks
      • emission/performance specifications (grams/hour of fine particulates)
      • purchase receipt (if available)

    • What is a declaration of compliance?

      This is a Metro Vancouver form that a person signs confirming that they have read, understand, and will use the best burning practices set out in Schedule B of Bylaw 1303 when operating a residential indoor wood burning device.

      A person may submit this form using Metro Vancouver’s Residential Indoor Wood Burning System or they can request and submit a paper version of the form.

    • What is registration?

      Registration means providing Metro Vancouver with specific information about eligible wood-burning devices located within the Urban Containment Boundary. See Bylaw 1303, Section 11.

      A person may register a device using Metro Vancouver’s Residential Indoor Wood Burning System or they can request and submit a paper version of the registration form.

    • What is the cost to register?

      There is no fee to register.

      To submit a declaration and registration form through the Residential Indoor Wood Burning System, you will need a valid email address and working internet connection.

      If you have requested that forms be mailed to you, then completed forms may be dropped off or mailed (at your expense) to:

      Bylaw 1303 Forms
      c/o Metro Vancouver Regional District
      Environmental Regulation and Enforcement
      4515 Central Blvd, Burnaby BC V5H 0C6

    • How do I find my device’s certification or emission standard?

      Refer to your operator’s manual or other material provided to you when you purchased the device. Depending on the type of wood-burning device, certification marks may be found on the back (of a freestanding stove) or on the side behind the faceplate (if an insert) depending on the make and manufacturer. Contact your retailer or manufacturer if unsure.

      Appliance certification/emission standard label

      Device certification/emission standard label

    • What if my wood-burning device is not eligible for registration?

      If your device is not eligible for registration and it is located within the Urban Containment Boundary, you are prohibited from using it after September 14, 2025. For example, an open fireplace that does not exclusively use manufactured firelogs, or isn’t a sole source of heat, is ineligible for registration because it does not meet the emission standards in Schedule A of the bylaw.

    • What about rental units or strata complexes?

      All owners and operators (e.g., occupants or tenants) of multi-family units with residential indoor wood-burning devices are individually responsible for complying with the bylaw. A declaration of compliance with best burning practices must be submitted for each unit, and only one registration per eligible wood-burning device within the urban containment boundary is required.

      Strata corporations or rental management companies may request materials for distribution to residents by contacting us at 604-451-6677.

    • What if I never use a wood-burning device?

      No action is required.

    • What if I want to use a wood-burning device in the future?

      If at a later date you intend to use a device (e.g., if you buy a new home with a device), you will need to comply with the bylaw before using it.

    • How do I submit information to Metro Vancouver?

      To submit your information electronically, for the online declaration and registration system.

      To request paper copies of the declaration or registration forms, call 604-451-6677 or email riwb@metrovancouver.org.

    • What will Metro Vancouver do with my personal information?

      Personal information is collected under the authority of Part 3 of Metro Vancouver Regional District Residential Indoor Wood Burning Emission Regulation Bylaw 1303, 2020 (“the Bylaw”) and for the purposes of administration or enforcement of the Bylaw.

      Collection, use and disclosure of personal information by a public body such as Metro Vancouver Regional District (“Metro Vancouver”) is regulated by Part 3, Division 2 of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 165, as amended. For further information about Metro Vancouver’s collection, use and disclosure of information, please contact Metro Vancouver’s Information and Privacy Officer at privacy@metrovancouver.org.

  • About the Bylaw
    • What is residential indoor wood burning?

      Residential indoor wood-burning refers to using a wood-burning device, such as a fireplace or wood stove, indoors for heat or ambiance. It does not include using a wood-burning device to cook food, or outdoor wood-fired hot tubs and heaters. The bylaw specifically includes the following residential indoor wood-burning devices: fireplaces, fireplace inserts, masonry heaters, wood stoves, pellet stoves, and wood-burning furnaces.

    • Why is Metro Vancouver regulating residential indoor wood burning?

      Residential indoor wood burning is the single largest contributor to harmful fine particle emissions in the Metro Vancouver region. Fine particles are linked to negative health effects, particularly for the elderly, children, and people with chronic heart and lung issues.

      Although steps have been taken to reduce residential indoor wood burning emissions through voluntary measures, such as rebates for exchanging an old device for a new low-emission device and education campaigns, additional measures are required to reduce emissions.

    • What are the bylaw requirements?

      The bylaw requires residents who use wood-burning devices to comply with “Best Burning Practices”, as defined in Schedule B. The bylaw also prohibits burning during the warmer season (May 15 to September 15) unless the wood-burning device is the sole source of heat in a residence, is in an off-grid residence outside the Urban Containment Boundary, or if there is an emergency (such as a power outage lasting for 3 hours or more). Non-registered devices will not be permitted to burn in urban areas after September 15, 2025.

      Requirements will be phased in to promote cleaner technologies, with more stringent requirements in more densely populated areas. These requirements are being introduced in stages between 2020 and 2025 and will help further reduce exposure to wood smoke emissions:

      Residential indoor wood burning timeline

    • What are best burning practices?

      Anyone using a wood-burning device in the Metro Vancouver region is required to use best burning practices to reduce wood smoke emissions.

      These best burning practices must be applied to minimize smoke:

      • Your fire must produce no visible emissions except for a maximum of 20 minutes within a four-hour period, when starting a new fire.
      • Operate your wood-burning device according to the manufacturer’s recommended operating procedures.
      • Only burning clean, seasoned wood or wood products, manufactured firelogs, or wood pellets and for the purpose of starting a fire only, non-glossy, uncoated, uncoloured paper.
      • Never burn garbage, including plastics, rubber, treated wood and painted wood. These release toxic chemicals.
      • Burn small, hot fires. They produce much less smoke than those left to smoulder.
      • If you need to burn a fire overnight to provide a heat source, load your fuel to prevent the fire smouldering. For more details, please see Schedule B of the bylaw
      • Inspect and maintain your wood-burning device regularly based on the recommendations of a qualified person.
    • When do the warm season burning prohibitions apply?

      The prohibitions apply during the warm season from May 15 to September 15 each year. You are prohibited from using your wood-burning device during the warm season, unless it is a home’s sole source of heat, or it is in an off-grid home located outside the Urban Containment Boundary, or there is an emergency (such as a power outage lasting 3 hours or more).

    • What is the Urban Containment Boundary?

      The Urban Containment Boundary designates the area or “footprint” in the region within which urban development may occur. The Urban Containment Boundary is defined in Metro Vancouver 2050 (page 14), the regional growth strategy, which was accepted by all Metro Vancouver members and the Metro Vancouver Board on Feb 24, 2023.

      The residential indoor wood burning bylaw treats wood-burning devices within the Urban Containment Boundary more strictly than devices outside it, because smoke from a single wood-burning device is likely to impact more people within the Urban Containment Boundary, where there is higher population density.

    • What if I rely on wood as a sole source of heat for my home?

      If you rely on wood heating as the only source of heat in your home, you must submit a declaration of compliance with best burning practices. Warm season restrictions (May 15 – September 15) do not apply for homes with no other source of heat.

      If wood burning is the sole source of heat and you are inside the Urban Containment Boundary, you need to register eligible devices with Metro Vancouver to continue using them after September 2025. Devices outside the Urban Containment Boundary do not need to be registered.

    • What if I need to use my wood-burning device?

      In the following circumstances, you may use a wood-burning device:

      • During emergencies, such as power outages lasting more than three hours.
      • In remote, off-grid locations located outside the Urban Containment Boundary.
      • If operated within a low-income household.
      • You may register a device in households where a wood-burning device provides the only source of heat.

  • Background Information

Trade in an old device and get a rebate

Metro Vancouver residents are eligible to receive a rebate for trading in their old uncertified wood-burning device (fireplace, wood stove, furnace) for a new low emission device (heat pump, electric insert, certified wood burning device, etc.), through Metro Vancouver’s Community Wood Smoke Reduction Program.​​​​

This webpage provides a simplified summary of sections of the Bylaw. It is not legal advice and does not provide an interpretation of the law. In the event of any conflict or difference between this webpage and the Bylaw, the Bylaw is correct and legal and must be followed.​

 Videos

 

 

Best Burning Practices - Residential Wood Burninghttps://vimeo.com/500646425, Best Burning Practices - Residential Wood BurningBest Burning Practices - Residential Wood Burning
Residential Wood Smokehttps://vimeo.com/219170181, Residential Wood SmokeResidential Wood Smoke

 Related links

 

 

Residential Indoor Wood Burning Declaration and Registration Systemhttps://service.metrovancouver.org/RIWB/, Residential Indoor Wood Burning Declaration and Registration SystemResidential Indoor Wood Burning Declaration and Registration System
Metro Vancouver Regional District Residential Indoor Wood Burning Emission Regulation Bylaw No. 1303, 2020https://metrovancouver.org/boards/Bylaws/MVRD_Bylaw_1303.pdf, Metro Vancouver Regional District Residential Indoor Wood Burning Emission Regulation Bylaw No. 1303, 2020Metro Vancouver Regional District Residential Indoor Wood Burning Emission Regulation Bylaw No. 1303, 2020
Community Wood Smoke Reduction Programhttps://metrovancouver.org/services/air-quality-climate-action/community-wood-smoke-reduction-program, Community Wood Smoke Reduction ProgramCommunity Wood Smoke Reduction Program

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Contact​​


For questions or concerns not covered on our website or for assistance with registration and declaration contact us by:

  • Email
  • 604-451-6677​​​​


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