Chattooga County Commissioner Jason Winters told WZQZ News that he is requesting that the annual burn ban be postponed due to the Easter tornado and storms that came through Chattooga County in mid-April.

Cleanup continues around the area from the storms that brought down hundreds of trees and limbs and damaged homes from Fields Walk to Halls Valley.  The amount of trees on the ground is overwhelming for some property owners who have been scrambling to get brush and limbs burned before the annual May 1st burn ban.

According to the Georgia EPD, “The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) has identified open burning as a significant contributor of the pollutants that form ozone. Therefore, open burning in metro Atlanta and the surrounding areas must be restricted during the summer months. Beginning May 1st and ending September 30th, EPD’s Open Burning Ban will be enforced in 54 Georgia counties. The Open Burning Ban prohibits citizens and businesses from burning yard and land-clearing debris. This rule is in addition to the year-round state ban on the burning of household garbage.”

Commissioner Winters says that he expects the state to allow an extension before the burn ban starts for Chattooga County.  The commissioner said he expects to hear a decision within the next couple of days before the May 1st deadline.