Stiffer fines could be in store for those Calgarians looking to celebrate with illegal fireworks, but one city councillor said it’s a necessary step to curb prohibited pyrotechnics.
Back from summer break, Calgary’s Community Development Committee will discuss fireworks bylaw amendments on Sept. 1 that address a growing concern with the sales and distribution of the celebratory devices.
Currently, the City of Calgary’s fire operations and fees bylaw prohibits the sale of consumer fireworks and only allows their discharge by certified professionals as an approved location, with a city-issued permit.
“Despite these restrictions, the sale and unauthorized use of fireworks remain issues,” read the city admin report.
According to City of Calgary data, between 2023 and 2025, Calgary 311 received 183 fireworks-related service requests. The admin report indicated that nearly half of the complaints happened around annual Diwali festivals, with 16 per cent happening around Canada Day and the Calgary Stampede.
“In October 2025, in the lead-up to and during Diwali, seven tickets were issued for the illegal sale and use of fireworks,” the city’s report read.
During the same period, Calgary Fire Department crews responded to four grass fires and one structure fire linked to fireworks activity.”
They said that the Calgary Police Service responded to an increased number of noise, public safety and “shots fired” concerns that were found to be fireworks. The City noted an Oct. 21, 2025, event that required a significant police response after thousands of fireworks were discharged over six hours.
The proposed amendments would significantly increase fines related to the sales of fireworks, from $750 to $3,000. It proposes a fine of $1,000 for someone openly displaying a firework in a public place, and a doubling of the fine for discharging fireworks without a permit – from $500 to $1,000.
Several other offences under the bylaw are also jumping from a minimum fine under the previous bylaw of $250 to a minimum of $750, with a maximum of $1,000.
Fireworks fines should be higher: Coun. Dhaliwal
Ward 5 Coun. Raj Dhaliwal, chair of the Community Development Committee, first raised the fireworks issue last November, after asking how the City of Calgary would deal with problems going back to 2023.
He said that he’s happy to see the fines going up.
“It’s $750, going up to $3,000. Why not the max that is allowed under the bylaw? Maybe $10,000,” he told LWC.
A jurisdictional scan done by the City of Calgary showed that some cities, like Mississauga, Ontario, had illegal fireworks fines of up to $100,000. Dhaliwal suggested that Calgary could have applied for a provincial exemption in this case, to make the fine a real deterrent.
The City had previously said that prohibited fireworks violations could qualify under the National Fire Code (Alberta) and be subject to a $100,000 fine.
Two other issues Dhaliwal had with the proposed bylaw included the way it was framed and a lack of a plan to enforce it.
While Diwali did have the highest number of complaints compared with other celebrations, Coun. Dhaliwal said that the city’s analysis didn’t necessarily have to single the major Sikh and Hindu festival out.
“I just don’t want people who are celebrating Diwali to be seen that they are being singled out through this. That’s not what I was hoping,” he said.
“We’re saying anyone and whoever within the city limits, whoever is doing this, will face the same consequences.”
Dhaliwal said that, like most bylaws proposed and approved in Calgary, enforcement is always an issue. The city admin report said that there would be added education and outreach done around fireworks this year. In particular, the city’s emergency management team, Calgary Fire Department and the Calgary police are developing a joint operational plan for Diwali 2026.
“That’s where I want to see more teeth that can bite and set an example that, ‘hey, look, this could happen,’” he said.
“Often what I hear from my residents is, yes, the bylaw does exist on a piece of paper, but it’s not being enforced. It’s just like any other bylaw.”
If the changes are approved at committee, they would require approval at a regular meeting of Calgary city council.
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