REGULATIONS
Controlled burning regulations within the Windsor Fire Protection District are set by the responsible air pollution control district, not by the fire department. Two air pollution control districts have jurisdiction over portions of Windsor Fire Protection District.

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), 939 Ellis Street, San Francisco, CA 94109 (415) 749-5000; fax (415) 928-0338 governs that portion of the District that falls east of Eastside Road, south of the Rancho Sotoyome Line, and south of T8H/T9H line.

Burning within the BAAQMD is strictly limited to agricultural applications; refer to the BAAQMD website for specifics. BAAQMD requires you notify them either online, by fax, or by mail before burning. If you go to this link http://www.baaqmd.gov/enf/forms/index.htm#openburning and click on the (Instructions for electronic filing) you will be able to fill out and submit the form online. You may also print it, fill it out manually, and return it to them.

The Northern Sonoma County Air Pollution Control District (NSCAPCD), 150 Matheson Street, Healdsburg, CA 95448 (707) 433-5591 governs the areas north of the Rancho Sotoyome and T8H/T9H line. The NSCAPCD requires you obtain a permit. If you have questions regarding legal burning or to request an exemption to a regulation, please contact NSCAPCD directly.

WHEN YOU CAN BURN
“Burn season” runs from late fall (generally after two inches of rain have fallen) through April 30. The air pollution district may elect to extend the season one month. Regardless of date, if the California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention/Sonoma County Department of Emergency Services declares a “red flag day,” or implements a “burn ban,” no burning is permitted. If you have any questions, contact the appropriate agency.

BEFORE YOU BURN
Once you have made the necessary notification/obtained the required permit, you must determine if it is a permissible burn day.

For Bay Area Air Quality Management District, call (800) 792-0787
For Northern Sonoma County APD, call (707) 565-2876

Windsor Fire Protection District requires you notify the fire department (707) 838-1170 and Sonoma County Fire Dispatch (707) 565-1700 each day that you will be burning, before you commence burning.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
Both the BAAQMD and the NSCAPCD determine permissible burn days based on air quality, not on the basis of fire safety. Therefore, it may be permissible to burn but not be safe to burn. Windsor Fire Protection District has the authority to prohibit burning even on permissible burn days if weather or other conditions make it unsafe for burning to occur.

Please review and follow the WFPD Controlled Burn Guidelines (pdf) before burning. If a burn escapes your control, you may be assessed a fine, the fire department may bill you for the cost of responding to and extinguishing the fire, and you may be held financially responsible for the damage to any neighbor’s property.

If your burn escapes your control, CALL 9-1-1 or (707) 565-2121 (cell phone) IMMEDIATELY, before making any effort to extinguish the fire yourself.

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