The Country Fire Authority's District 15 Duty Officer Gavin Hope said this week was perfect weather for farmers to conduct planned burns so people could expect to see a number lit this week.

The CFA has received a lot of requests and is now directly issuing permits for farmers within Golden Plains, while the City of Ballarat has also begun issuing its own permits.

Permits have also been issued for landowners in Hepburn and Moorabool Shires.

With the current cooler weather, he said community members could expect to see a number of burns happening from around 2pm and into the evening, mostly to the south west and north of Ballarat.

"People can expect to see very big smoke columns. They will be quite large and can sometimes look like a mushroom cloud," he said.

Mr Hope said this was the result of firefighters putting a firebreak around the edge of the area to be burned so when the area is whipped around with a firelighter torch, a mushroom cloud can form as the flames meets in the middle.

Forest Fire Management Victoria has also begun its planned burning schedule and will be conducting planned burns in the forests.

Mr Hope said while the CFA appreciated community members remaining vigilant and calling in fires as they are observed, in order to reduce the instances of brigades being called out unnecessarily to planned burns, he encouraged people to first have a closer look.

"Planned burns must be performed in calm conditions with no wind. If conditions are like this, people can probably safely assume it is a farmer burning off," he said.

"Don't be alarmed but if you are, investigate a bit further. If you can see smoke, have a closer look and try to see if farmers are working at the fire edge. And try to get an exact address."

While permits are being issued for farmers, Mr Hope said the strict conditions enforced as part of the fire danger period still remained for other community members.

This means that it is illegal to light a fire in the open air, unless a permit is issued and strict requirements are abided by.

Despite this, there have been a number of illegal burn offs in recent weeks.

"Some people think because it's rained or because farmer Joe or farmer Bill was burning in his paddock that they can, that as soon as it rains the restrictions are automatically lifted but they aren't," Mr Hope said.

"To lift the fire danger period we have to go through a decision making process. It doesn't just automatically come off after it has rained."

A police spokesperson said that the majority of fires each summer were caused by people being careless, by leaving a campfire unattended or operating machinery on a day of total fire ban.

"Careless behaviour regarding fires has the same potential consequences as those caused by arson, easily leading to the destruction of life and property," they said.

While police understand that farmers stubble burn to prepare for sowing the following season's crops, the burns are undertaken with CFA approved permits in safe conditions.

However, police have responded to stubble burns which have reignited in hotter, windier conditions several days later.

"Farmers have a responsibility to ensure that their stubble burns are completely extinguished, including around fence lines and trees.

"The message to all is clear, it's everyone's responsibility to be mindful of their activities during fire danger periods, otherwise your actions could result in a bushfire."

Depending on the circumstances, police may charge a person on summons with lighting a fire on a day of total fire ban. The penalty for lighting a fire during a total fire ban can be up to two years in jail or up to $40,000 in fines.

Further, anyone found guilty of recklessly or intentionally causing a bushfire faces a penalty of up to 15 years imprisonment.

Last fire season there were two fires later in the season - one at Bunkers Hill in late March and the other at Mt Clear in mid-April.

Mr Hope said that while much of the region is greener due to recent rains, there was an underlying dryness in the forests so they could still burn in the right conditions. He said residents should not rule out warmer weather in coming weeks or the potential for a fire.

"If we get strong winds from any direction, that would fan fires. Even though it is milder, we could still have issues so we encourage everyone to exercise caution," he said.

A date has not been set for the end of the fire danger period, but it is expected to remain until May.

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