Bernalillo County requires property owners to abate hazardous weeds and combustible vegetation under the weed abatement ordinance. East Mountain WUI areas near the Sandia and Manzano foothills face stricter defensible space expectations from county fire officials.
Bernalillo County Code Chapter 46 (Nuisances) and the county weed abatement program require owners to remove tumbleweeds, tall grass, and combustible brush that create a fire hazard, typically enforced when vegetation exceeds 8 to 12 inches or when accumulated dead material threatens structures. In East Mountain unincorporated areas (Tijeras, Cedar Crest, Sandia Park) the Bernalillo County Fire & Rescue department encourages a defensible space buffer of 30 feet around structures consistent with NFPA 1144 and NM State Forestry guidance, though NM has no statewide defensible space mandate. Vacant lots owners receive notice-and-abate letters; the county may abate and lien under NMSA §3-18-5 authority applied via county ordinance. Rio Grande bosque areas carry added cottonwood litter risk.
Failure to abate after notice: county contracts abatement and places a lien on the property per Chapter 46. Administrative fee plus actual cost of mowing/clearing. Refusal after repeated notices may escalate to misdemeanor under NMSA §4-37-3.
Bernalillo County, NM
Bernalillo County Animal Care Ordinance (Chapter 6, §6-47) — unlawful to allow an animal to persistently or continuously bark, howl, or make noise common to ...
Bernalillo County, NM
Construction noise in unincorporated Bernalillo County is regulated under the county noise ordinance (Chapter 30, Art. IV) and general nuisance provisions. B...
Bernalillo County, NM
Bernalillo County has no leaf blower-specific ban. Gas-powered blowers are widely used in unincorporated areas. General noise and air quality rules apply, wi...
Bernalillo County, NM
Bernalillo County Code Chapter 30, Article IV (Noise) establishes noise regulations for unincorporated areas. State law NMSA §30-20-1 also applies — disturbi...
Bernalillo County, NM
Commercial vehicle parking in unincorporated Bernalillo County regulated by zoning code. Off-street loading/unloading requirements in Section 21 of Appendix ...
Bernalillo County, NM
Bernalillo County Code §30 and Albuquerque §8-5-2-6 define abandoned vehicles as those left on public right-of-way for 72+ hours or inoperable vehicles store...
See how Bernalillo County's brush clearance rules stack up against other locations.
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