I’m aware that bonfires are banned in France but does that include a small fire-pit in your garden? It seems that it’s OK to have a barbecue - so - can one have a small fire-pit and chuck a sausage on it? Does the ruling depend on the local Mairie - because our ex-Maire used to have bonfires ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ?
More local restrictions Kent, in our village fires of all sorts are banned during the very dry and hot spell before they had harvested the wheat from the fields. I had seen a field on fire nearby due to a bbq the mairie reported. I used mine after the harvest but had the hose ready just in case. Bbq has a lid, fire pit doesn’t in my case.
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I agree - entirely regional. Where we live in Normandy there generally seem to be no restrictions on barbecues or firepits but then the wildfire risk is pretty low!
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In the main, general restrictions are made by the Prefecture and finely tuned by the Mairie if local conditions make it necessary.
We are surrounded by dry gardens and fields of “paper” like crops and it only takes a spark to have disastrous results.
Fireworks, bonfires, bbq, strimmers, mowers et al have been banned locally and perhaps further afield.. and yet I distinctly heard some fireworks going off last night.
Can’t understand why folk have to be so stupid/reckless.
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Considering the amount of barbecue equipment openly on sale in many stores in the 86 region, it would appear that small, contained barbecue type fires are OK. The biggest problem is with large bonfires burning all sorts of waste that can create polluting clouds of smoke and potentially become out of control and spread to the surrounding coutryside.
But they are not. A cigarette butt can set off a fire. A BBQ certainly can. 
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Do not take part of my comment out of context, I never said any fires were OK, I remarked that all the barbecue equipment on sale makes it look like barbecue fires are OK. I totally agree that even a cigarette butt can start a fire - so can an empty beer bottle in the right (or should that be wrong) circumstances.
Bbq’ing as I write, however the hose is beside me as are two buckets and never left unatended. All damped down when cooking is done
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No charcoal barbecues allowed here at all. I have a gas plancha which is allowed as are gas barbecues. The shops still sell lots of charcoal and charcoal barbecues though.
Deffo not allowed here and fireworks for July 14th have been cancelled in many communes after the weekend’s huge fire. My family had to buy an electric plancha to take to their camp site as they are not allowing BBQ’s there either on the Atlantic coast.
It’s the right thing to do.
I haven’t checked this year, but last year Narbonne had drones instead of fireworks. They can be excellent displays, no fire risk, no air pollution and no noise. Our dog didn’t notice a thing.
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Having had one of our Airedales flee when the next door neighbour’s fireworks started early (otherwise she would have been indoors) I’m all for drones. It took hours to find her.
We used to sit with her in the utility room - washing machine and tumble dryer going (attempt to block the bangs out) while she lay on the floor panting and trembling.
We had a Norwegian forest cat that used to sit on the window sill inside the house and look over to the village pub about 30m away and watch all the rockets go up on bonfire night. The noise didn’t affect him at all. He was completely fascinated.
Our Airedale was a nervous wreck too but the cat couldn’t have cared less, he’d have been outside if we’d let him.
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