Norman, OK Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)

NCC 16-107 starts from a general ban on open burning outside a building, then lists exceptions that stay lawful only if no public nuisance is or will be created. One of those listed exceptions covers backyard fire pits directly: campfires and other fires used solely for recreational or ceremonial purposes, or for outdoor non-commercial preparation of food. Unlike the agricultural land-clearing exception in the same section, which sets a hard 150-foot distance from occupied structures and a daylight burning window, the recreational-fire exception carries no separate numeric setback, size cap, or time-of-day limit in the text; its only stated condition is the nuisance standard.

That means a complaint about smoke, sparks, or safety can still be enforced through the City's nuisance-abatement authority even where the fire's purpose fits the exception. No fire pit permit or Fire Marshal sign-off is required for this category, unlike the training, hazard-elimination, and forest-management exceptions in the same section, which each require specific official authorization before the fire is set.