Howard County, in humid central Maryland, has no California-style defensible-space or brush-clearance mandate. You may clear vegetation, but you cannot burn the cleared leaves or brush without a permit. Forest clearing may trigger the Maryland Forest Conservation Act.
Unlike wildfire-prone western states, Howard County does not require homeowners to clear brush for defensible space; there is no fixed clearance distance around a home. The relevant restriction is on disposal: the county explicitly bars burning leaves, brush, yard waste and refuse without a permit, and land-clearing burns need approval from the Bureau of Environmental Health during the October-May window. Large-scale forest clearing may fall under the Maryland Forest Conservation Act (Natural Resources §5-1601), which requires reforestation or afforestation for qualifying development. Overgrown, weedy lots are instead handled through the county's property-maintenance and nuisance code rather than a fire ordinance.
There is no fire penalty for failing to clear brush, but burning cleared brush without a permit is a citable offense, and overgrown lots may draw property-maintenance enforcement.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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Howard County allows residential backyard composting and actively promotes it. The county runs a Feed the Green Bin curbside food-scrap collection and sells ...
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Howard County has no ordinance specifically prohibiting or requiring artificial turf for residential yards. Synthetic lawns are generally allowed, but becaus...
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Howard County places no restriction on planting native or pollinator gardens. Maryland's low-impact landscaping law (House Bill 322, 2021) bars homeowners as...
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Howard County does not ban rainwater harvesting. Rain barrels and cisterns are legal and actively promoted through the county's Live Green Howard and stormwa...
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Howard County has no year-round odd/even watering ban. Water use is limited only when the state declares a drought. Under Maryland's Level One Mandatory Rest...
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Howard County's adopted Property Maintenance Code requires exterior premises to be kept free of weeds and rank plant growth, but it applies only to rental an...
See how Howard County's brush clearance rules stack up against other locations.
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