New Zealand Legislation: Acts
Acts are laws made by Parliament
(1) Every person commits an offence against this Act who sets on fire, or assists to set on fire, or causes or permits to be set on fire, or aids, abets or assists in setting on fire, in the open air, any vegetation or any other combustible material whatsoever, except—
(a) in the case of an open season,—
(i) within any State area, pursuant to an authority or permit from a Fire Officer for that area:
(ii) within a forest area, the fire safety margin of a forest area, or a specially protected site (not being an area, margin, or site within a State area), pursuant to an authority or permit from a Fire Officer for the district:
(iii) within all other areas (including the fire safety margin attached to a State area), without need for an authority or permit of a Fire Officer as long as no warning under section 20 or order under section 21 is operative:
(b) in the case of a restricted season,—
(i) within any State area or the fire safety margin attached to any State area, pursuant to an authority or permit from a Fire Officer for the area:
(ii) within all other areas, pursuant to an authority or permit from a Fire Officer for the district:
(c) in the case of a prohibited season and, notwithstanding paragraphs (a) and (b), in any area in respect of which a warning under section 20 or order under section 21 is operative, pursuant to a special permit under section 24.
(2) Every permit or authority for any specified person to do any act for which a permit or authority is required under this section—
(a) shall at the time of issue be recorded in writing in the prescribed form (if any), and shall thereupon become effective; and a copy thereof shall be immediately handed to, or as soon as possible transmitted to, that person; and
(b) may in addition to such writing be communicated to such person by any convenient means, oral or otherwise, to enable him to act upon it as soon as possible:
provided that in the event of any dispute or doubt the writing so recorded shall prevail in the absence of conclusive evidence otherwise; and
(c) shall be evidenced by such person, within a reasonable time after he is required to do so by a constable or Fire Officer, by production of his copy of the permit or authority.
(3) Every permit, special permit, authority, approval, consent, or other fire control measure (hereinafter in this section referred to as a permit) issued pursuant to this Act to allow the lighting of a fire in the open air shall be deemed to have been issued subject to the following conditions:
(a) no fire shall be lit while a strong wind is blowing or when conditions are such that the fire is likely to spread beyond the limits of the land or other property in respect of which the permit was issued:
(b) except in the case of a special permit under section 24—
(i) the permit shall be deemed suspended during such time as any warning under section 20 or order under section 21 is in force; and
(ii) the permittee shall, immediately before lighting the fire, reasonably confirm that no such warning or order is currently in force:
(c) nothing in this section or in any such permit shall be deemed to relieve any person from liability for any actionable damage sustained by any other person in consequence of any act, matter or thing done by the first-mentioned person under any such permit as aforesaid, or to impose upon any Fire Officer or Fire Authority any liability by reason of the issue of such permit.
(4) Any Fire Officer or Fire Authority may, for the purposes of fire control, withhold the issue of a permit where in his or its reasonable opinion the use of the permit would not be in the public interest.
Compare: 1955 No 44 s 21
Section 23(1)(a): substituted, on 2 September 1996, by section 7(1) of the Forest and Rural Fires Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 123).
Section 23(1)(a)(iii): amended, on 17 May 2005, by section 5(1)(a) of the Forest and Rural Fires Amendment Act 2005 (2005 No 53).
Section 23(1)(b): substituted, on 2 September 1996, by section 7(1) of the Forest and Rural Fires Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 123).
Section 23(1)(b)(i): amended, on 17 May 2005, by section 5(1)(b) of the Forest and Rural Fires Amendment Act 2005 (2005 No 53).
Section 23(2)(c): amended, on 1 October 2008, pursuant to section 116(a)(ii) of the Policing Act 2008 (2008 No 72).
Section 23(3)(c): amended, on 2 September 1996, by section 7(2) of the Forest and Rural Fires Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 123).
Section 23(4): amended, on 2 September 1996, by section 7(2) of the Forest and Rural Fires Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 123).
