What You Can Do
Work to provide residents with convenient, affordable alternatives to backyard burning. Many areas are successfully changing this practice using some of the following meth ods:
Promote Alternatives to Backyard Burning
• Establish and promote free or low-cost drop-off centers for residents who want to self-haul or recycle.
• Create a burn barrel exchange program to provide disposal service discounts to partic ipants while educating them regarding dis posal alternatives.
• Distribute information on public or com mercial collection, recycling, and disposal
services.
Educate Residents
• Conduct outreach programs to change behavior, such as print or radio ads and brochures (available from EPA as templates for your own modifications).
Regulate and Enforce
• Establish and enforce effective regulations and ordinances.
• Train county police, fire marshalls, and health and environmental inspectors on local ordinances and authorize them to
issue fines, as well as educate residents.