Rohnert Park, CA Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)
Outdoor burning rules in Rohnert Park, 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
- Open fires banned
- citywide unless chapter allows it, § 8.20.010
- Cooking/recreational fires exempt
- § 8.20.030(A)
- Agricultural/weed-abatement burns
- need fire chief + air district approval
- Misdemeanor penalty
- up to $500 fine / 6 months (§ 8.20.040)
- Infraction fines
- $50 / $100 / $250 escalating
- Regulated burn hours
- 5 a.m.-10 a.m. under § 8.24.020
Summary
Rohnert Park bans open outdoor fires anywhere in the city under Municipal Code Section 8.20.010, defined at Section 8.20.020 as any outdoor combustion not vented through a flue. Cooking fires and recreational fires are exempted under Section 8.20.030(A), but agricultural, weed-abatement and industrial-training burns need advance permission from the fire chief and the air pollution control officer.
No person, firm, corporation, association or public agency shall ignite, cause to be ignited, permit to be ignited, or suffer, allow, or maintain any open outdoor fire within the city, except as provided in this chapter. ... "Open outdoor fire" means any combustion of combustible material of any type outdoors in the open, not in any enclosure, where the products of combustion are not directed through a flue. ... A.Fires used only for cooking of food for human beings or for recreational purposes;
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 51 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
20, Open Outdoor Fires, bars any open outdoor fire in Rohnert Park unless the chapter itself allows it. 020 defines an 'open outdoor fire' broadly, as burning combustible material of any kind outdoors, not enclosed, where smoke is not routed through a flue, so a firepit, brush pile or trash burn all qualify. 030 lists narrow exceptions: fires used only for cooking food or for recreation; fires a public officer sets or permits for weed abatement, fire-hazard prevention, or firefighter training; industrial-employee firefighting training with the fire chief's and the air pollution control district's advance permission; agricultural fires the county agricultural commissioner sets for disease and pest control; safety flares; and fires the fire chief permits to manage stubble, grazing land or irrigation ditch vegetation, most of which require a written application filed at least forty-five days ahead and advance notice to the air pollution control officer. unless a fire chief permit or an enclosed incinerator says otherwise. 010.
Violations & Fines
Violating the open-fire ban is a misdemeanor under Section 8.20.040, punishable by a fine up to $500, up to six months in jail, or both, unless the city charges it as an infraction, which carries escalating fines of $50, $100 and $250 for a first, second and third violation within a year. Each day a fire is set, allowed or maintained in violation of the chapter counts as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I have a campfire or backyard fire pit in Rohnert Park?
Is burning yard debris or brush piles legal in Rohnert Park?
What is the penalty for an illegal open fire in Rohnert Park?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Rohnert Park
How Rohnert Park compares: Cities with the Strictest Outdoor Burning Rules·California rules heatmap·Compare Rohnert Park to another location·View the California fire regulations overview
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Outdoor Burning in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Sonoma County handle outdoor burning.