Bernalillo County, NM Fire Regulations: Wildfire Zones (2026)
Key Facts
- Fuel modification, moderate hazard
- 30 feet
- Fuel modification, high hazard
- 50 feet
- Fuel modification, extreme hazard
- 100 feet
- Max fine per violation
- $300, up to 90 days jail
- Enforcing agency
- Bernalillo County Fire Code Official
Summary
Homes in Bernalillo County's mapped Wildland-Urban Interface areas must maintain defensible space and may need a Fire Code Official-approved fire protection plan.
M108.2 Content. The plan shall be based upon a site-specific wildfire risk assessment that includes considerations of location, topography, aspect, flammable vegetation, climatic conditions, and fire history... M109.2 Fuel Modification. In order to qualify as a conforming defensible space... fuel modification shall be provided within a distance from buildings or structures as specified in Table M109.2... Moderate Hazard 30 [feet]; High Hazard 50; Extreme Hazard 100.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 92).
Full Breakdown
Bernalillo County's Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) Code applies in mapped high-risk areas: the East Mountain Area from Tramway Boulevard to the Sandia Mountains and San Antonio to the Sandia Indian Reservation, and Rio Grande Bosque-adjacent land extending 1,000 feet from the Bosque's edge. Buildings there need conforming access, water supply, and, when the Fire Code Official requires it, a site-specific wildfire risk assessment. Owners must clear or modify nonfire-resistive vegetation around structures to the fuel-modification distance set by hazard tier: 30 feet (moderate), 50 feet (high), or 100 feet (extreme). This governs unincorporated county land only; Albuquerque's Integrated Development Ordinance and its own fire code cover the city.
Violations & Fines
Misdemeanor: fine up to $300.00, imprisonment up to 90 days, or both per violation; each 10 days a violation continues is a separate offense (§ 34-79).
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do Bernalillo County's wildfire zone rules apply?
How much defensible space is required around a home?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bernalillo County
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