Redlands, CA Fire Regulations: Brush Clearance (2026)

The City of Redlands directly regulates hazardous vegetation through City Code Chapter 8.40, 'Abatement of Weeds and Rubbish.' The chapter declares that weeds and grasses which, when dry, constitute a fire hazard are a public nuisance, and it gives the Fire Chief authority over the weed-abatement process. The Redlands Fire Department's Community Risk Reduction (formerly Fire Prevention) division runs a Vegetation Management / Weed Abatement Program and conducts inspections in the City's high fire-hazard areas twice each year. Property owners are required to maintain their property and clear vegetation that can create a fire hazard, creating defensible space around structures. The City's program operates alongside California's defensible-space framework -- Government Code 51182 and Public Resources Code 4291 -- which requires 100 feet of defensible space around structures in designated fire-hazard zones. Properties in the foothills (the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone near San Timoteo Canyon, Live Oak Canyon, and the Crafton Hills area) need a Defensible Space Inspection; owners can schedule one through the Fire Department at (909) 798-7600. When a property fails inspection, the owner receives a written notice to abate the hazard; if the work is not done, the City performs it and assesses the cost as a charge against the property.