Lynchburg, VA Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)

Sec. 4-61 generally prohibits open burning within Lynchburg, but Sec. 4-62 lists exceptions to that prohibition to the extent covered by the State Air Pollution Control Board's regulations. ' Unlike the leaf-burning exception in Sec. 4-63 (which sets a 300-foot distance from occupied buildings and a ten-foot setback from property lines) or the yard-trimmings exception in Sec. 4-64, the recreational campfire exemption in Sec. 4-62(b) carries no numeric setback of its own in the text; it is simply carved out of the general ban rather than made subject to its own permit and distance scheme.

Because Sec. 4-61(f) makes clear that any exempted burning still does not excuse a person from liability for damage or injury, or from other applicable laws, a recreational fire that grows out of control, produces excessive smoke, or is set close enough to a structure to endanger it can still expose the person responsible to nuisance or negligence liability even though the fire itself falls within the Sec. 4-62(b) exception. Homeowners are also bound by any manufacturer clearances for a fire pit device and by the fire marshal's office's authority under Sec. 4-61(g) to order all outdoor burning, including recreational fires, stopped during a declared air pollution episode.