Marion County reviews updated burn resolution; commission sends draft for legal review

Marion County commissioners reviewed a revised county burn resolution on Feb. 3, 2025, after work by a burn committee that included local fire chiefs. The draft clarifies notification requirements, the circumstances under which a fire chief or emergency manager may halt burning and a schedule of administrative penalties; commissioners asked staff to prepare the text for county legal review rather than approve it that day.

The discussion centered on a handful of practical and legal questions that county officials and fire chiefs said must be clarified before adoption. Commissioners and chiefs debated a 120‑minute notification window, how to handle smoke that impairs roadways, whether the emergency manager must notify commissioners when burning is halted, and how the county resolution overlaps with Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) rules for municipal burn sites.

Why it matters: the resolution would update a 2017 policy and affect farmers, landowners and municipal brush‑pile practices across the county. It sets operational standards commissioners said are intended to reduce…