Greenville County, SC Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)
Outdoor burning rules in Greenville County, SC, also called the burn ban, open burning, or fire restriction ordinance, set when you can burn yard waste, debris, or run a recreational fire.
Key Facts
- Allowed
- Own-premises yard debris
- Notify first
- SC Forestry, 800-986-5299
- Prohibited
- Trash, treated wood, tires
- County rule
- No burning near rights-of-way
- Burn ban
- Overrides all burning
Summary
You may burn leaves, branches, and yard trimmings from your own residence under SC Regulation 61-62.2, but state law requires you to notify the SC Forestry Commission before burning, and open burning is banned on and near county road and drainage rights-of-way. Household trash burning is prohibited.
Open burning of leaves, tree branches, or yard trimmings originating on the premises of private residences and burned on those premises.
Full Breakdown
SC Open Burning Regulation 61-62.2 permits open burning of 'leaves, tree branches, or yard trimmings originating on the premises of private residences and burned on those premises,' plus cooking fires and recreational fires. Under SC Code 48-35-10 you must notify the SC Forestry Commission (800-986-5299) before burning outdoors outside city limits and take precautions. Greenville County's outdoor-burning ordinance additionally prohibits open burning on, or where it may damage, any county road or drainage right-of-way, and empowers the local fire chief or county fire official to enforce it. Burning garbage, treated wood, plastics, tires, or trade waste is not allowed. Burn bans issued by the Forestry Commission suspend all burning.
Violations & Fines
Burning prohibited materials, failing to notify the Forestry Commission, or unlawful burning near a right-of-way can bring fire-official enforcement, DES air-quality penalties, and liability under SC Code 48-35-10 for an escaped fire.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I burn leaves and branches in Greenville County?
Do I have to call before burning?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Greenville County
How Greenville County compares: Cities with the Strictest Outdoor Burning Rules·Compare Greenville County to another location·View the South Carolina fire regulations overview
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