Hinds County, MS Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Hinds County outdoor burning falls under a layered regulatory framework. Jackson Municipal Code §46 generally prohibits open burning within city limits except for small contained recreational fires and outdoor cooking. Clinton (Code Chapter 14) and Byram similarly restrict burning in residential zones. In unincorporated Hinds County, yard waste burning is allowed but must comply with MDEQ Air Quality Permit regulations under 11 Miss. Admin. Code Pt. 2, which prohibits burning of trash, tires, insulation, asphalt, construction debris, and painted or treated wood. The Mississippi Forestry Commission requires notification before agricultural or land-clearing burns under MS Code Ann. §49-19-351, and permits can be obtained through the Commission's Hinds County office in Raymond. Burns must be monitored continuously with suppression equipment on hand. Wind speeds above 15 mph and humidity below 30 percent trigger automatic burn restrictions. The 2020 and 2022 drought seasons produced multiple countywide burn bans. Jackson's history of air quality concerns, particularly in neighborhoods near industrial corridors along the Pearl River, makes MDEQ enforcement more active in Hinds than in many rural MS counties.