Modoc County, CA Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

Searching the entire Modoc County Code for 'weed abatement' confirms there is no dedicated weed-abatement program; the only references are in the appended statutory-reference list (noting California's general grant of authority to counties to abate weeds and rubbish) and an entry in the ordinance disposition table showing the prior nuisance-abatement ordinance was repealed by Ordinance 308. The current vehicle is Chapter 8.20 (Nuisance Abatement and Civil and Criminal Penalties for Code Violations), adopted by Ordinance 308-B in 2017. Section 8.20.020 declares public nuisances to include conditions that are 'dangerous to human life, unsafe or detrimental to the public health or safety,' which can reach dense dry brush and hazardous vegetation, and authorizes abatement after notice and hearing. For wildfire fuels specifically, Chapter 8.31 adopts CAL FIRE's fire-hazard-severity maps and the defensible-space requirements of California Public Resources Code Sections 4290 and 4291. PRC 4291 requires owners of structures in State Responsibility Areas to clear and maintain 100 feet of defensible space; in Local Responsibility Area lands designated Very High severity, Chapter 8.31 specifically applies PRC 4291 clearance. The county does not publish a fixed weed height or an annual abatement schedule.