District of Columbia, DC Fire Regulations: Wildfire Zones (2026)

Unlike western states with extensive wildland-urban interface, the District of Columbia has no state or local wildfire hazard severity zones, no defensible space requirements, and no Community Wildfire Protection Plan. DC Fire and EMS Department under the 2017 DC Fire Code (DCMR 12-H) addresses urban fire prevention through structural fire codes, brush/debris accumulation rules (Fire Code section 304), and building-level fire separations. The District's largest natural forested area, Rock Creek Park, is federal land managed by the National Park Service under a Fire Management Plan focused on prescribed burning and invasive species control. Other notable natural spaces — Fort Dupont, Glover Archbold, Kingman Island — are also NPS or National Capital Region jurisdictions with their own wildfire management programs. Residents living adjacent to these parks are not required to maintain defensible space under District law, though property maintenance rules still require removal of heavy brush accumulation within 15 feet of structures. Homeowners insurance companies in DC generally do not apply wildfire surcharges. Climate projections suggest modest future wildfire risk in Ward 3, Ward 4, and Ward 7 parkland-adjacent homes, but no regulation currently exists.