For Island County Sheriff Mark Brown and the county commissioners, it simply doesn’t make sense to allow people to shoot off fireworks when dry weather conditions are dangerous enough to permit a burn ban.
“The fireworks law is separate from a burn ban, so legally someone could discharge fireworks at the same time you have a burn ban for public safety purposes where you can’t have a fire that produces an ember,” said Brown, who also acts as Island County fire marshal.
The commissioners remedied the situation last week with an ordinance — which goes into effect next year — allowing Brown to temporarily restrict the discharge of fireworks during a Type II burn ban in unincorporated areas of Island County.
Additionally, the ordinance decreases the total days consumer fireworks are authorized for discharge in the unincorporated areas. Under state law, consumer fireworks can be discharged at various times from June 28 to July 5 and Dec. 31 to Jan. 1. The new county ordinance will restrict consumer fireworks to July 3-5, as well as Dec. 31.
Municipalities in Island County, such as Langley, Coupeville and Oak Harbor, do not fall under the scope of the ordinance.
According to Island County Commissioner Rick Hannold, the new law has been a year in the making and follows polarized public commentary.
On the one hand, many community members, during public hearings, vied for a complete ban on fireworks, voicing concerns for the noise disturbances, littering and fire dangers that result from firework usage. On the other, some called for zero firework restrictions, noting that not-for-profit organizations rely on firework sales for fundraising.
In light of the two sides, Island County Commissioner Jill Johnson and Hannold believe the ordinance is a fair middle ground.
“I know there are still community members that have raised concerns about the need for fireworks at all and would like to see a full ban, and that’s not something that I will ever support,” Johnson said. “People need to take personal responsibility for their actions as it relates to fireworks and make good choices.”
Brown said the county recognizes that there are a lot of moving parts to this decision, noting that firework restrictions following a ban will impact local industries. Still, he said county officials needed to separate this aspect from the issue of public safety and fire danger while considering the new law.
In this way, the ordinance is a compromise, he agreed.
“Overall, the community was very worried about the fire danger last year, and rightfully so.” Hannold says. “What this does is it puts a measure in place if we do have that situation come up again that we can do something for the safety of the island and the residents.”
More restrictive than Washington state laws, the ordinance must undergo a 12-month grace period and will not go into effect until next June, in time for July 4, 2017.
Though the majority of community members in Island County use fireworks responsibly, Hannold and Johnson said they believe the ordinance will discourage those that may act otherwise.
“There are always those that are going to do what they want to do, but at least it will stop people who are having second thoughts from going ahead and doing it,” Hannold said.
