Highland, CA Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)

Highland Municipal Code § 15.29.030 adds Section 328 to the California Fire Code. The base rule is that outdoor fires shall not be built, ignited or maintained in or upon hazardous fire areas except by permit from the fire code official. The exception is what backyard fire features rely on.

Under the exception, outdoor fires within inhabited premises or designated camp sites are allowed without that permit when built in a permanent barbecue, portable barbecue, outdoor fireplace, incinerator or grill and kept a minimum of 30 feet (9,144 mm) from a grass-, grain-, brush-, or forest-covered area. The 30-foot distance is measured to the vegetated area, not to the property line, so a fire ring on a lot that backs onto a wash or foothill brush in the City of Highland has to be placed with that distance in mind.

The exception names specific containers. A permanent barbecue, portable barbecue, outdoor fireplace, incinerator or grill qualifies. An open ground fire or unlisted pile does not appear in the list. The code does not print a separate definition of a recreational fire pit or a size limit, so the containers named are the ones the exception covers.

Section 328.3 limits use: permanent barbecues, portable barbecues, outdoor fireplaces or grills shall not be used for the disposal of rubbish, trash, or combustible waste material. Section 328.2 still applies to permitted fires, barring them in high winds, when a person aged 17 or over is not always present to tend the fire, and after a public announcement that open burning is prohibited.

Chimneys are covered too. Section 305.5.1 requires an approved spark arrester on any chimney attached to a solid-fuel appliance or fireplace, with openings that do not pass spheres larger than 1/2-inch. Section 605.3.2 prohibits free-standing non-commercial incinerators.