Carson, CA Fire Regulations: Brush Clearance (2026)

California Public Resources Code §4291 requires owners of any structure in or adjacent to a State Responsibility Area or Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone to maintain 100 feet of defensible space (Zone 0: 0–5 ft ember-resistant; Zone 1: 5–30 ft lean/clean/green; Zone 2: 30–100 ft reduced fuel). The State Fire Marshal and local building officials are the enforcement authority. Carson sits in LA County and is mostly Local Responsibility Area outside VHFHSZ, but LACoFD's Brush Clearance Unit actively enforces (see fire.lacounty.gov/brush-clearance-unit). LA County Fire Code Title 32 §325 supplements PRC 4291 with vegetation-management duties applicable wherever LACoFD has jurisdiction — including: 10-foot clearance around chimneys (except oak), 5-foot clearance from roofs, 4 feet between trees and power lines, and removal of dead vegetation. For weed abatement on vacant lots, LACoFD and county weed-abatement contractors issue annual inspection notices; failure to clear results in a county-performed abatement billed to the property owner as a special assessment.