Glenn County, CA Fire Regulations: Brush Clearance (2026)

Much of unincorporated western Glenn County is State Responsibility Area (SRA) within CAL FIRE Tehama-Glenn Unit jurisdiction, where the foothills and Mendocino National Forest edge create real wildfire risk. Under California Public Resources Code section 4291, a person who owns, leases, controls, operates, or maintains a building or structure in the SRA must maintain defensible space of 100 feet from each side and from the front and rear of the structure, but not beyond the property line. CAL FIRE divides that 100 feet into zones: an ember-resistant zone within 5 feet of the structure, more intense fuel reduction between 5 and 30 feet (the 'lean, clean and green' zone), and reduced fuel from 30 to 100 feet. The law also requires removing tree limbs within 10 feet of chimney outlets, keeping trees free of dead wood, and keeping roofs clear of debris. CAL FIRE and its partners conduct defensible-space inspections in the SRA. Separately, Glenn County treats the accumulation of grass, weeds, and other flammable material as a fire hazard and public nuisance; the county's weed-abatement provisions allow enforcing officers — with input from local fire protection district chiefs — to issue notices ordering property owners to abate the nuisance by removing weeds and combustible material. Confirm specific SRA status and zone designations on the CAL FIRE / State Fire Marshal Fire Hazard Severity Zone viewer.