Kalamazoo, MI Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Kalamazoo adopted the 2021 International Fire Code by § 15-40 and rewrote several of its sections through § 15-41. Amended Section 307.1(a) bars any person from kindling or maintaining an open fire on private property in the City of Kalamazoo unless the Fire Marshal expressly permits it, and 307.1(e) extends that ban to streets, alleys, roads, and other public rights-of-way. Section 307.1(b) bars burning construction or demolition waste on-site or anywhere else in the city, and 307.1(c) bars burning any waste matter that creates dense smoke or odor.

Section 307.1(d) is unqualified: the burning of leaves or brush within the City of Kalamazoo is hereby prohibited. Section 307.1(g) bars burning garbage or rubbish citywide except in an incinerator approved under Section 605.8, and 307.1(h) bars using a barrel or trash burner that does not meet that same incinerator standard. Amended Section 307.4.1 separately prohibits kindling bonfires or campfires anywhere in the city, a stricter local rule than the base International Fire Code. Narrow exceptions in Section 307.1 cover cooking fires in an approved food-preparation container, gaseous or liquid-fired construction salamanders, and roofers' or plumbers' tar and pitch kettles used safely in the regular course of business.

Incinerators that are used still face added local limits: they must sit at least 10 feet from any building or property line, their stacks must clear combustible roofs or eaves by five feet, and a 10-foot clearance from rubbish, dry grass, and vegetation is required under Sections 605.8.9 and 605.8.12. The Bureau of Fire Prevention within the Department of Public Safety enforces the article, and the Chief of the Department of Public Safety, with City Manager approval, can grant modifications under § 15-44.