Wednesday manager Brian Laws had refused to rely on other results and demanded a victory against Norwich City to make sure his side avoided the drop.
Laws, who has worked wonders after a calamitous injury list left his side flirting with relegation for a large part of the season, breathed a sigh of relief as his side struck three second-half goals.
Norwich, already safe after a 3-0 win over QPR eight days ago, broke the deadlock in the ninth minute, after Dion Dublin's trickery had left a gaping hole in the Wednesday rearguard.
Darren Huckerby burst through from midfield, as makeshift full-back Jermaine Johnson gave him too much space. Dublin played a neat dummy to allow the Norwich winger to run on, before coolly slotting the ball beyond Lee Grant from 12 yards.
Dublin, playing his last game before bringing a 23-year career to a close, almost scored when his header flashed inches wide from Darel Russell's precise cross before Wednesday were back on level terms in the 23rd minute.
Burton's surge into the area was ended by a lunging tackle from centre-back Jason Shackell and Burton sent keeper David Marshall the wrong way from the spot to register his eighth goal of the season.
On-loan striker Bartosz Slusarski carved out a half-chance as Wednesday slowly recovered from their nervy start but with three defenders in pursuit he dragged the ball wide of the far post from 16 yards.
Wednesday took the lead in the 53rd minute, Ben Sahar steering Slusarski's low cross beyond Marshall from close range.
Huckerby should have scored when he ran through unmarked only to fire wide before Burton calmed the home fans' nerves 14 minutes from time when he turned Tommy Spurr's deep cross over the line from four yards out before substitute Leon Clarke added a fourth with three minutes to go.