Apply for an open burning permit

Open burning refers to the burning of any material in a space with no chimney to vent the emissions into the atmosphere. This includes fires set for fire safety training purposes but excludes any recreational or commercial braaing.

How to apply

Examples of open burning include biodiversity burns of open veld, burning of agricultural stubble, and stack or fuel load reduction burns of biomass. No one may carry out open burning of any material on any land or premises unless the person has first obtained written authorisation for open burning from the City's Air Quality Management Unit, which is part of City Health.

Step 1: Download and complete the Open Burning Application Form from the document downloads section below.

Provide the following along with your application:

a certified copy of your ID; and
proof of address.

Step 2: Submit your application to the Health Department via post to:

Department: City Health

Air Quality Management

PO Box 2815

Cape Town

8000

You can also fax it to 021 590 5215 or email it to bronwyn.davidson@capetown.gov.za.

Please note

The City may request a site inspection before deciding on the outcome of your application, which you will have to pay for.

Contact us

Bronwyn Davidson, City Health Department

Telephone:
021 444 2914

Email:
bronwyn.davidson@capetown.gov.za

City Call Centre

Telephone:
0860 103 089

Document downloads

1. Conduct Open Burning Application Form 2023/24
  19/09/2023, Application form - 142.7 KB