Shasta County, CA Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)
Fire pit rules in Shasta County, CA, also called outdoor burning, recreational fire, or open flame ordinances, cover fuel types, clearances, and when burning is allowed.
Key Facts
- Waste/trash burning
- Requires fire warden permit
- Campfire (cooking/warmth) exemption
- No permit needed, § 8.08.010(E)
- Waste burning violation
- Misdemeanor
- STR fire pit diameter limit
- 3 feet
- STR fire pit setback
- 25 feet from structures/lines
Summary
A backyard fire pit used only for cooking, warmth, or ambience counts as a 'campfire' under County Code Section 8.08.010 and is exempt from Shasta County's outdoor burning permit requirement, unlike burning waste, trash or dry grass. Rent your home as a short-term rental, though, and Section 17.88.230(F)(7) adds hard limits on any fire pit you allow guests to use.
No person shall...burn any waste, trash, dry grass or other inflammable material out-of-doors unless a permit has first been issued therefor by the county fire warden or his duly authorized agent, which may include the California Division of Forestry...E.This section does not apply to campfires. For purposes of this section, "campfire" means a fire used solely for cooking food, personal warmth, lighting, ceremonial or aesthetic purposes, not within any building, mobile home or living accommodation mounted on a motor vehicle. However, exemption from the permit requirements of this section does not authorize any fire to be set, caused or maintained in any manner that violates any provision of this code or any other law.F.Violation of this section is a misdemeanor.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code: Supplement 22).
Full Breakdown
010 requires a permit from the county fire warden, which may include CAL FIRE, before anyone burns waste, trash, dry grass or other inflammable material outdoors within the county's local-responsibility area, and any burning must strictly follow the permit's terms. Subsection E carves out campfires entirely: a fire used solely for cooking food, personal warmth, lighting, or ceremonial or aesthetic purposes, not inside any building, mobile home or vehicle-mounted living space, needs no burn permit at all. That exemption is not a blank check, though: it does not authorize a fire set or maintained in a way that violates any other code provision or law, including state and local burn bans or air-quality restrictions.
010 is a misdemeanor. 230(F)(7) allows fire pits and fire areas for guests, when not otherwise prohibited by state or local fire rules or bans, only if expressly authorized by the owner, and requires them to be no more than three feet in diameter, set on a non-combustible surface, covered by a fire screen, and located at least twenty-five feet from any structure, combustible material, or property line.
Violations & Fines
Burning waste, trash, or dry grass outdoors without the fire warden's permit under Section 8.08.010 is a misdemeanor. A short-term rental operator who allows guests to use a fire pit that doesn't meet the three-foot diameter, screen, non-combustible surface, or twenty-five-foot setback standards of Section 17.88.230(F)(7) is in violation of that section, an infraction that can also trigger revocation of the rental permit under Section 17.88.230(I).
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to have a fire pit in my backyard in Shasta County?
Does the campfire exemption let me burn during a burn ban?
Are fire pit rules different if I run a short-term rental?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Shasta County
How Shasta County compares: Cities with the Strictest Fire Pit Rules·California rules heatmap·Compare Shasta County to another location·View the California fire regulations overview
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