Caldwell, ID Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Under Caldwell City Code 08-17-03, no person may build, ignite or maintain any outdoor fire except as the article allows. Firefighting/training fires, cooking fires and recreational/ceremonial fires need no permit; weed-abatement fires along noncombustible fence, canal and ditch banks and other special-circumstance fires require a permit from the Caldwell Fire Department under 08-17-07. Permit conditions in 08-17-09 are strict: all open burning is prohibited, and permits are invalid, on days when the Department of Environmental Quality reports an air quality index of sixty (60) or higher for any pollutant in the Treasure Valley; burning is also banned in winds over ten (10) miles per hour or when thunderstorms approach. Permitted burning is allowed only between 8:00 A.M. and 7:00 P.M., piles are limited to three feet (3') in diameter and two feet (2') high, fires must stay at least twenty-five feet (25') from structures and combustibles, only one fire per permit may burn at a time, and a competent adult must attend with extinguishing equipment ready. Permits are valid for seven days. Section 08-17-05 bans burning leaves, grass clippings, garbage, tires, plastics, petroleum products, treated lumber, construction debris and many other materials at all times.