Collier County Board of Commissioners authorized a burn ban May 14. The ban prohibits open burning, which is any outdoor fire or open combustion of material that produces visible emissions, of trash and yard waste, which includes vegetative matter resulting from landscaping and yard maintenance operations. The decision came after consultation between the county Bureau of Emergency Services, Florida Forest Service, Collier County Fire Chiefs’ Association, Collier County Sheriff’s Office and the National Weather Service. The group jointly identified a need for a burning ban to become effective immediately after certain environmental conditions were met, including dry conditions. Local dependent and independent fire districts and state and federal Agencies have responded to numerous wildfire events that have frequently threatened homes, schools, businesses, parks and roadways. The ban includes all unincorporated Collier County but exempts all commercial agricultural burning, lawful controlled industrial or commercial environments that are part of the manufacturing or some type of assembly process and burning activities regulated by the Florida Forest Service.