By Scott Taylor,Staff Writer

The Maine Forest Service plans to offer grass, brush and leaf fire permits online beginning June 6, but some local fire officials are skeptical.

The Web-based plan charges $7 for burn permits that are good for 48 hours. The person’s name, the location of the fire and the approximate time it would be set is sent to local dispatchers and fire agencies automatically – just in case.

“If they get a call from a neighbor, if somebody sees that fire, they can answer that question right there,” said Jim Downie, forest ranger spokesman for the Maine Forest Service. “And if something does go wrong, they know about it.”

Right now, people wanting to light fires on their land need to track down their fire warden – usually a local firefighter. They can get a free permit to set a small fire to burn brush, leaves, grass or waste wood, whatever is allowed according to local ordinances.

People in Lewiston-Auburn can burn brush, wood and construction leftovers, but not leaves, said Auburn Fire Prevention Officer Gary Simard.

Local firefighters don’t inspect most fire locations, but they go over the state and local regulations before issuing a permit, Simard said. His concern is making sure local fire agencies know about a permitted blaze.

“Right now, we know about a fire because it comes through us,” Simard said. “There has to be some good way to make sure the local agencies get that same information from the Web. We’ll just have to have one person checking the Web every day if we want to know about a permit that’s out there.”

Local wardens and fire chiefs can still hand out free permits, Downie said. Rumford Fire Chief John Woulfe said he thinks people would rather work directly with local officials.

“Once they figure out they can get the same thing for free, it won’t be used as much,” Woulfe said. “But we’re happy to try it out. There may be bugs left in the system, but we’ll give it a try.”

Local wardens and firefighters hand out between 200,000 and 300,000 permits each year, Downie said. They include small fires designed to clear brush as well as larger agricultural fires designed to spur new growth in fields.

The permits have the same limits they would under the old system. The permit requires them to have firefighting tools handy and lets them set fires only at night, between 5 p.m. and 9 a.m.

“Outside of those hours, that’s when 95 percent of the fires that get away occur,” Downie said. Winds tend to pick up later in the day and by then, the early morning dew has evaporated.

The online permits may be obtained by going to www.maineforestservice.org and following the appropriate link.