Sutter County, CA Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)
Outdoor burning rules in Sutter County, 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.
Key Facts
- Valley residential burn days
- Monday, Wednesday, Saturday (when declared open)
- What may be burned
- Only dry vegetation grown on the property
- Agricultural burn permit
- Required from FRAQMD / designated fire agency (Rule 2.5)
- Burn zones
- 7 zones; Sutter Buttes = Burn Zone 7 (seasonal bans)
- Fire-season permits
- CAL FIRE suspends/reinstates (~Nov 1) burn permits
- Burn-day info line
- FRAQMD (530) 741-6299
Summary
Open burning in unincorporated Sutter County is regulated by the Feather River Air Quality Management District (FRAQMD) Regulation II and CAL FIRE. Valley residential burn days are Monday, Wednesday and Saturday; only dry vegetation grown on the property may be burned, and agricultural burning needs an FRAQMD permit.
F.1 Except as provided in these Rules and Regulations, no person or land manager shall conduct, allow, or use open fires for the purpose of disposal of any waste or other material. ... H.1 Permit Required: No person shall ignite any open fire, conduct, perform or participate in any open burning activity, or allow the open burning activity on any property under the person's possession without first obtaining a valid burn permit issued by the APCO and follows the conditions specified on the permit and these rules and regulations. ... H.2 Exemptions to Permit Requirements. The following are exempt from a District permit until proper public notice to remove the exemption is filed. Other permitting requirements from the fire protection services may be required. (a) Open outdoor fires used for cooking food for human consumption or for recreational purposes. (b) Open burning of vegetation at one- or two-family residences on parcels less than two acres in size, provided that the requirements of section L "Residential Burning" and the requirements of fire protection services are both met.
Full Breakdown
Outdoor (open) burning in Sutter County is governed by the Feather River Air Quality Management District's Regulation II - Open Burning, in coordination with CAL FIRE and local fire districts. 5, no person may set an open fire for agricultural burning without a valid permit issued by the Air Pollution Control Officer or a designated agency. 12) include the Walton, Yuba City, Live Oak, Meridian, Sutter, Pleasant Grove, Oswald-Tudor, East Nicolaus, and Robbins fire departments. 5). For valley-floor residential burning, FRAQMD designates Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday as burn days, and only dry vegetative material grown on the property may be burned - no household garbage, plastics, or non-vegetative waste.
Sutter Buttes locations (Burn Zone 7) and CAL FIRE jurisdictions can be subject to seasonal burn bans. 6). 11 provides that nothing in the regulations permits burning on days when fire agencies prohibit it for fire control. CAL FIRE additionally suspends residential burn permits across the Nevada-Yuba-Placer area during peak fire season, typically reinstating them around November 1. Always check the FRAQMD burn-day status line before igniting.
Violations & Fines
Burning without a required permit, on a no-burn day, or of prohibited materials violates FRAQMD Regulation II and can result in air-district enforcement. CAL FIRE permit suspensions and fire-agency prohibitions during fire season override burn days.
Frequently Asked Questions
When can I burn yard waste outdoors in Sutter County?
Do I need a permit for agricultural burning?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sutter County
How Sutter County compares: Cities with the Strictest Outdoor Burning Rules·California rules heatmap·Compare Sutter County to another location·View the California fire regulations overview
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