Open Burning

Campfires, cigarette smoking and off-road vehicles were banned in Allegany County's Green Ridge State Forest yesterday, where firefighters battled two forest fires as tinderbox conditions set the stage for more.The Maryland Emergency Management Agency has banned open burning throughout Allegany and Garrett counties because of the rising danger of forest fires."The woods from the lower Shore to Garrett County are extremely dry," said Deputy State Fire Marshal Robert B. Thomas Jr."We have really not seen any measureable amounts of rainfall throughout Maryland in over six weeks, and in Western Maryland for longer than that," he said.

Chamber will hold candidates forum in Westminster The Carroll County Chamber of Commerce will hold a candidates forum at 7 p.m. tomorrow at Wilhelm Ltd. Caterers. Wayne Barnes will moderate the forum. WTTR radio station will broadcast the forum live. Wilhelm Ltd. Caterers is on Route 140 in Westminster. Information: 410-848-9050. League of Women Voters schedules series of forums The League of Women Voters of Carroll County will hold a candidates forum for county commissioner and House of Representatives candidates from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Tuesday at Winters Mill High School.

An Aberdeen Proving Ground environmental scientist said Friday that an emergency cleanup of aging glass bottles found along the banks of a Bush River tributary has turned up chemical warfare agent in some of the containers. Don Green, who works in the base's environmental restoration program, said he received a phone call late Thursday from the Edgewood Chemical Biological Center, which has been analyzing the containers since the cleanup began in the spring. The 28 bottles, which were discovered at the rear of a burial pit after grass along the shoreline was peeled back, contained some mustard agent and lewisite, Green said.

If you thought the county's woes at the Millersville landfill are bad, wait until you hear about the old dump in Glen Burnie.Pollutants found in the ground water at the Millersville facility pale in comparison to those discovered 12 years ago at the Glen Burnie site.Residents around Millersville, many of whom rely on well water, are upset that volatile organic chemicals -- toxic substances commonlyused in industrial and household cleaners -- have been found in two test wells at the Burns Crossing Road facility.

Like all jurisdictions, Carroll has taken its lumps during the recent rounds of state budget cuts.And while the county commissioners have lamented the sudden actions of the governor and General Assembly, they also have offered a suggestion for a remedy that could help soften the blow in the future.The commissioners have written to the governor, chairmen of the four House and Senate budget and taxation committees and Carroll's legislators, urging them to adopt fees for some state permits, inspection certifications and plan review services which currently are free.

Westminster police are searching for three men who broke into the office of Design Enterprises in the 1200 block of Business Parkway early yesterday morning and stole equipment valued at more than $5,000.An official said the men escaped in a late model Ford pickup truck after forcing the front door of the business about 12:15 a.m. Police said the stolen equipment included two computers, a fax machine and a typewriter.The men were seen loading the machines onto the pickup truck and heading toward Baltimore County, officers said.

A rash of brush, field and woods fires since March 9 -- with little measurable rainfall in Harford County -- has Department of Natural Resources forestry officials concerned."

In Baltimore City Children's Bookstore to hold auction of signed books, art The Children's Bookstore in Roland Park will mark its 25th anniversary Sunday with the first of a three-part silent auction of signed, first-edition children's books and original artwork by illustrators. The bidding period of each auction will last two weeks. The second and third installments will take place through Dec. 14. All proceeds will be donated to the Children's Bookstore Educational Foundation, which supplies free books to city schoolchildren.

Anyone illegally burning leaves or kicking up too much dust at a construction site will face stepped-up enforcement efforts as part of a measure that became law this week.The County Council voted unanimously Monday night to give county health inspectors power to issue citations to anyone who burns leaves or trash illegally.Tom Andrews, county health officer, said the law is already included in state environmental health codes, but enacting a county law means county health inspectors will be able to respond more quickly to complaints about smoke, odors and dust.