The borough of Coaldale plans to scale back on its use of heating oil.

To do so, council approved the purchase of a hot water heater during Tuesday’s regular council meeting.

Councilwoman Claire Remington suggested the purchase and said it could be used for the municipal building.

“This is something we talked about last year - especially with the price of oil bills,” she said. “We had talked about a hot water heater for here. We would shut off the oil altogether except for when the dead of winter comes to heat the hallways and stuff.”

Installing the heater and shutting down the oil burner, she said, could save the borough money.

“This way they will have hot water for the summer. We won’t be using the oil burner (to heat the water),” Remington said.

The unit costs $1,425 and would serve the entire municipal building.

“It’s a lot cheaper than oil,” Councilman Wayne Figner said.

In an unrelated matter, council approved an ordinance that would prohibit open burning and make burning of any type of rubbish illegal.

The ordinance prepared by Solicitor Robert Yurchak would permit outdoor fires only if they are on private property and in a fire pit that is confined to a noncombustible container covered with mesh.

The ordinance also requires that fires be at least 20 feet away from any structures and public or private right of way. Additionally, fires in fire pits would only be permitted between the hours of 6 and 11 p.m. any day from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

At all other times of the year, fires in fire pits may only be started on holidays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays between 5 and 10 p.m.

Anyone who violates the ordinance faces a $50 fine for the first offense; $150 fine for the second offense, and a $500 fine for third and subsequent offenses. They would also be charged costs to extinguish or mitigate the fire.

The ordinance will be enforced by borough police, fire company chief and anyone designated to do so by the fire company.

“Thank you for doing it,” Remington said after the ordinance was adopted. “That’s something off our hit list, finally.”