Fayette County, GA Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Chapter 12, Article II is the county's Open Burning and Air Quality Control Code, adopted to amend section 307 of the International Fire Prevention Code. Section 12-23 makes it unlawful to cause, suffer or allow open burning anywhere in the county without first obtaining a residential or commercial permit, unless the burning falls within the narrow no-permit list in § 12-24, which covers recreational cooking fires, authorized firefighter training burns, open-flame equipment like torches and portable heaters used with approved safety measures, and small warming fires set by contractors for their workers.

Section 12-26 caps permitted burn piles at ten feet by ten feet by ten feet, or 1,000 cubic feet, with only one pile burning at a time, and issues residential permits free of charge for yard debris, storm-damaged limbs and weed abatement, while commercial permits can carry a fee set by the Board of Commissioners. Layered on top of the permit system, § 12-33 imposes a blanket, county-wide prohibition on all open burning during May, June, July, August and September, effective since January 1, 1996, with the same three narrow exceptions used in § 12-24: recreational cooking fires, authorized firefighting training, and safety-compliant open-flame equipment.

The fire marshal can further restrict or completely ban burning at a specific location under § 12-30 if it threatens public health or safety, and the director of fire and emergency services can order any fire extinguished under § 12-25.