Voters in Nobleboro will decide on a fireworks ordinance, when they vote in town meeting Fri., March 15. That election will also decide the seats of one selectman, two school board members and the road commissioner. The town’s annual town meeting will follow on Sat., March 16.
Acting as an ad hoc committee, the Board of Selectmen has been working on an ordinance to present to citizens at a public hearing in late January or early February. They planned to meet one more time in workshop session, during the week following their Jan. 2 workshop meeting. Town Attorney Peter Lynch will be at the final workshop.
Members of the public were present at the meeting, but were told that their responses would not be heard at that time. Comments may be submitted to the board through the town office during regular office hours.
Gallagher said consumer fireworks should not be used on days when there is a very extreme chance of fire. Under state law, these are referred to as Class 4 and Class 5 fire days. Gallagher suggested requiring a permit similar to that needed for an outdoor fire.
Among those members of the public were Clete and Carolyn Baltes, who distributed a letter addressed to the board. The letter supported a minimal ordinance that only contains references to state law referring to age and time restrictions, the requirement that fireworks only be used on a person’s own property or with permission of the property owner and limits during times of high fire danger. The letter says the state law limiting use to those 21 or older “only leave(s) adults setting off fireworks so they must take responsibility.”
“Some folks are concerned about fire hazard,” the Baltes letter states. “I say make Nobleboro fire ordinance one line. ‘No fireworks when fire danger Class 4 or 5.’ Fairfield, Farmingdale and North Berwick have added this as their ordinance.”
The board discussed instituting restrictions in densely populated areas and agreed that the only such area in Nobleboro might be Damariscotta Mills.
“It’s cheek by jowl there,” Selectman Al Lewis said. He said he thought the board should consider designating Damariscotta Mills as a no-fireworks zone.
Other municipalities have prohibited consumer fireworks in downtown and commercial districts.
State law requires any person using consumer fireworks to have written permission of the property owner. The board discussed creating a brochure or information sheet that landlords and those renting seasonal cottages could provide to renters. Such a document might include a permission form that landlords could use if they wished to allow renters to use fireworks on their property.
Brackett suggested the board clarify whether the town could grant permission to those requesting it, for special occasions such as weddings at the public landing. He said selectmen should consider creating a procedure for such requests.
Asst. State Fire Marshal Rich McCarthy said Jan. 3 that most town landings are on state-owned property.
“At that point you would have to get the permission of the landowner,” McCarthy said. “That would be the people of Maine.”
“We’ve yet to be asked,” he said, referring to the Fire Marshal’s Office. “It wouldn’t be me.”
Brackett told the Nobleboro board he attended a private fireworks display in Newcastle on New Year’s Eve. “I was amazed by the debris,” Brackett said. “It wasn’t a fire danger, but it was a mess.”
He agreed that the housing density in Damariscotta Mills was the densest in town.
Board Chairman Dick Spear said it was too bad people could not use common courtesy in such situations and discuss their plans with neighbors.
“You write an ordinance because people don’t always have common courtesy,” Selectman Deb Wilson said.
Spear said it took weeks to round up his livestock after he gave someone permission to go goose hunting on his land a few years ago. He said he knows of one landowner who has already asked to be notified if a neighbor plans to use fireworks.
“It can be very dangerous with a 1200-pound animal like a horse who gets crazy,” Lewis said.
Wilson suggested fireworks only be allowed in a time period around the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve. She said she was also open to allowing them on Saturdays.
Spear offered two options. The first was to allow fireworks between May 15 and Sept. 15. He said that would cover Memorial Day and Labor Day, which do not have fixed dates. He said his other idea was to leave the dates open but restrict the time of day.
“I’m up for debate,” Spear said. Saying that they are only visible after dark, he suggested allowing fireworks between 7-10 p.m.
Gallagher said he generally has more firefighters available at night.
Lewis suggested only allowing fireworks between June 15 – July 15 and Dec. 15 – Jan. 15. He said people have complained to him about hearing the noise from fireworks explosions “all summer” and have asked that some quiet times be set in the ordinance.
Board members said they were open to allowing fireworks use for special occasions outside of restricted times, by permission. They agreed that such a decision should be made by selectmen on a case-by-case basis and would require written permission.
“There should be some day that people can expect not to hear noise,” Wilson said.
“I’m not a guy who’s bothered by fireworks,” Brackett said. “Personally, I’m the kind of guy who thinks, ‘It’s my property, and if I can do it safely then so be it.’ The town already has a noise ordinance. Those things can be loud.”
“I think the sheriff will have trouble enforcing any ordinance and there may be added expense to Nobleboro if someone take(s) legal action against the town,” the Baltes letter states.
“From an enforcement perspective, as long as it’s clear and easily defined, we can enforce it.” Brackett said.
Spear said the state restriction against minors using fireworks is not being enforced. Gallagher said he has received complaints from the lake area. “It echoes on the lake,” Gallagher said. “You get used to hearing it after a while.”
Gallagher said the noise is sometimes annoying. He said he heard from one resident who said he no longer has to watch the Patriots’ games because a neighbor “shoots off something every time they score.” He said there is considerable noise when the football team wins a game.
The board briefly discussed whether to allow the sale of fireworks in Nobleboro. They agreed that state law and municipal codes would be likely to cover such businesses but did not reach a consensus on the matter.
They also touched on possible penalties for those who do not comply with a municipal fireworks ordinance.
McCarthy said the Fire Marshal’s Office maintains a list on its website, of towns that have created municipal ordinances.
“We’re asking them to notify us so we can keep an ongoing list,” he said.
Last year, which was the first in which consumer fireworks were legal in Maine, saw at least 19 reported injuries from their use. McCarthy said his office was still waiting for some year-end reports and could not report a total number of fireworks-related fires at this time.
Under the state law passed in 2011, the possession and use of consumer fireworks are legal in Maine with some exceptions. Fireworks have been broken into three categories: consumer fireworks, fireworks and display or commercial grade fireworks.
Consumer fireworks are only products that are tested and certified by a third-party testing laboratory as conforming with United States Consumer Product Safety Commission standards and do not include missile-type rockets, helicopters and aerial spinners, and sky rockets and bottle rockets, as defined by the State Fire Marshal.
The latter two categories of fireworks and display or commercial grade fireworks are subject to further state regulation. Professional fireworks displays by licensed pyrotechnicians are covered elsewhere in state law.
Municipalities may put in place regulations more strict than those outlined in state law.
For more information on consumer fireworks in Maine can be found at the website at www.maine.gov/dps/fmo/fireworks.
