Sammamish, WA Fire Regulations: Backyard Fires (2026)

Residents may have backyard recreational fires such as campfires and fire-pit fires, subject to the rules of Eastside Fire & Rescue and the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency (PSCAA). Eastside Fire & Rescue limits cooking and recreational fires to 3 feet by 3 feet by 2 feet with a minimum 25-foot separation from structures and combustible materials. PSCAA's regional standard caps recreational fires at three feet in diameter and two feet in height. Only charcoal or seasoned natural wood may be burned; burning yard waste, trash, rubber, plastics, petroleum products, or garbage is prohibited. A capable adult must attend the fire at all times with a means to extinguish it, and smoke must not create a nuisance for neighbors. Fires in manufactured cooking devices do not require a permit, while open recreational fire pits may require a free burn permit from Eastside Fire & Rescue. Critically, all recreational and backyard fires are prohibited during PSCAA air-quality burn bans and during fire-safety burn bans called by the fire marshal, and Eastside Fire imposes a seasonal outdoor-burning moratorium from June 15 through September 30 each year, which covers the high-risk summer period. Residents should always verify there is no active burn ban or moratorium before lighting a backyard fire. Land-clearing and yard-waste fires are never allowed because Sammamish is in PSCAA's urbanized no-burn zone.