Outdoor burning rules in Ontario, CA — also called the burn ban, open burning, or fire restriction ordinance — set when you can burn yard waste, debris, or run a recreational fire.
Open burning to dispose of residential waste, leaves, brush, or trash is prohibited in Ontario. The city is in the South Coast Air Quality Management District, whose Rule 444 (Open Burning) expressly prohibits residential burning, and the Ontario Fire Prevention Bureau enforces the 2022 California Fire Code open-burning rules.
Ontario is within the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD). SCAQMD Rule 444 (Open Burning), most recently amended July 12, 2013, governs all open burning in the district and lists 'residential burning' among the activities a person is expressly prohibited from conducting. Rule 444 defines residential burning as 'open burning for the purposes of disposing of combustible or flammable solid waste...from a specific residence on its premises.' This means burning household trash, yard waste, leaves, or land-clearing debris in the backyard is not allowed - residents must use green-waste and trash collection instead. The Ontario Fire Prevention Bureau also enforces the 2022 California Fire Code (CFC), adopted by the Ontario Municipal Code, under which any open burning must be conducted and approved per CFC Section 307, and the fire code official may order open burning extinguished when it creates a hazard. Recreational fires and barbecues are treated separately (see the backyard-fires and fire-pit-rules subcategories).
Residential open burning is a violation of SCAQMD Rule 444 and the adopted California Fire Code, subject to SCAQMD enforcement and administrative penalties, plus potential California Fire Code citations and fire-department cost recovery for any response. The fire code official is authorized to order extinguishment of any non-compliant open burning.
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Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in San Bernardino County.
See how other cities in San Bernardino County handle outdoor burning.
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