Las Vegas, NV Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)
Outdoor burning rules in Las Vegas, NV, 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
- Open burning
- Unlawful citywide, LVMC 9.24.030
- Only exception
- Fire Dept.-approved incinerator
- Max fine
- $1,000 (LVMC 1.24.010)
- Max jail
- 6 months
- Repeat violations
- Each day = separate offense
- Enforcing agency
- Dept. of Fire and Rescue
Summary
Las Vegas bans open burning of garbage, rubbish, dead animals or dirt anywhere in the City, including bonfires on private lots, streets, alleys and public grounds, under LVMC 9.24.030. The only exception is rubbish burned in an incinerator approved by both the Fire Chief and the Department of Community Development. Because Chapter 9.24 sets no specific penalty, the citywide general penalty of up to $1,000 and six months in jail applies.
9.24.030 - Burning of garbage and rubbish. It is unlawful for any person, for the purpose of burning garbage, rubbish, dead animals or dirt, to kindle or maintain any bonfire or knowingly to furnish the materials for any such fire, or to authorize any such fire to be kindled or maintained in any garbage or rubbish receptacle, or on any street, alley, road, lane or public grounds or upon any private lot; provided, however, that rubbish may be burned in an incinerator duly approved by both the Chief of the Department of Fire and Rescue and the Department of Community Development. ... 1.24.010 - Designated. Whenever in this Code or in any ordinance of the City the doing of any act is made or declared to be unlawful or an offense or a misdemeanor...if no specific penalty is provided therefor, the violation of any such provision of this Code or any ordinance shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or any combination of such fine and imprisonment.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 61).
Full Breakdown
030 makes it unlawful for anyone to kindle or maintain a bonfire, or to knowingly furnish materials for one, for the purpose of burning garbage, rubbish, dead animals or dirt. The ban covers fires lit in a garbage or rubbish receptacle and fires on any street, alley, road, lane or public ground, as well as on private lots. 010, separately bans kindling or using any fire or bonfire on a public street, alley or public ground within the City for any purpose. 030 is rubbish burned in an incinerator that has been approved by both the Chief of the Department of Fire and Rescue and the Department of Community Development; an unapproved backyard incinerator or burn barrel does not qualify.
020 makes each day a violation continues a separate offense. Enforcement sits with the Department of Fire and Rescue, which also administers the City's broader fire code. 020. 010(B) directs that the more stringent requirement providing the greatest fire safety controls. Because open burning creates an obvious wildfire and structure-fire risk in a desert climate with low year-round humidity and frequent Red Flag conditions, residents who want to burn yard waste, trash or other rubbish outdoors need a Fire and Rescue-approved incinerator first, not just a backyard fire pit.
Violations & Fines
Burning garbage, rubbish or other waste outside an approved incinerator is a misdemeanor under the citywide general penalty, LVMC 1.24.010: a fine not exceeding $1,000, imprisonment not exceeding six months, or both. LVMC 1.24.020 treats each day a violation continues as a separate offense, so a burn pile left smoldering over a weekend can generate multiple counts. The Department of Fire and Rescue enforces the ban alongside the City's adopted Fire Code.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I burn yard waste or trash in my backyard in Las Vegas?
What's the penalty for illegal open burning in Las Vegas?
Does the International Fire Code add more burning restrictions?
Is lighting a fire on a public street ever allowed?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Las Vegas
How Las Vegas compares: Cities with the Strictest Outdoor Burning Rules·Compare Las Vegas to another location·View the Nevada fire regulations overview
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Outdoor Burning in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Clark County handle outdoor burning.