• Reduce ladder fuels. This is vegetation that may help fire climb vertically.
  • Dead or dying branches that hang low on trees
  • Shrubs and small trees that grow beneath larger trees
  • Tall grasses and weeds that can ignite easily and provide a pathway for fire to climb
• Scrape a 4ft wide control line to bare, mineral soil
• Make sure water is accessible throughout your site and adjacent to your site; you want to be able to put out any fire that may climb a tree or jump over your control line!

CAL FIRE will require permits for all burning activities (broadcast, agricultural, and residential pile burning). You will need to apply for a BURN PERMIT using the CAL FIRE online platform. If you’d prefer a paper application, visit your local CAL FIRE station.

• See if its a permissible or open burning season: Current Burn Status | CAL FIRE Burn Permits
• Prepare a Burn Plan. Here is the CA Standardized Prescribed Fire Plan Template
  • We also have our resources for your burn: Prescribed Fire Education Programs
• Here is where you apply for burn permits: CAL FIRE Burn Permits
  • Residential Burn Permit: LE-62A (4 foot x 4 foot piles)
  • General Burn Permit: LE-5  (piles larger than 4x4 or agricultural burning)
  • Broadcast/Prescribed Burn Permit: LE-7 (broadcast or underburning in timber litter/grass)

Residents wishing to burn MUST verify it is a permissive burn day prior to burning by contacting their local air district. If you are broadcast burning, you will need to get a burn permit from the air district as well.

• Check if its a Burn Day in Nevada, Sierra, or Plumas County: Burn Day Status - Northern Sierra Air Quality Management District or call 530-274-7928
  • Open burning is ALWAYS BANNED in the city limits of Grass Valley, Nevada City and Portola.

Important: If you are located within city limits of Truckee, please contact Truckee Fire Protection District for specific permit requirements.

• Applications may be obtained through their website and residents must adhere to permissible burn days through their local air district.

To find out whether your burning location is located inside Truckee Fire (LRA), Auburn Fire (LRA) or CAL FIRE’s jurisdiction, please reference CAL FIRE’s Burn Permit Responsibility Area Viewer website.

In your burn plan,  you'll want to have the number of your local fire district. Here's a map to determine which fire district you are located in: Fire Districts | Nevada County, CA

• On that page are links to each fire district's website and contact.

These are requirements for Western Nevada County, Town of Truckee, Sierra County, Downtown/East Quincy, & Plumas County from the Northern Sierra Air Quality Management District. In this district:

• You can burn less than 1 acre/year without needing an Air Pollution Permit 
• 1 or more acres/year requires an Air Pollution Permit, which is roughly $80-95 in Nevada County. This permits lasts a year.
• f you burn 10 or more acres in a day, you are required to have a Smoke Management Plan, which has a cost dependent on the amount of acres being burned and the reason for the burn (a base cost of $88.82 if it's just a residential burn)
• Both application forms are on Forms - Northern Sierra Air Quality Management District under "Open Burning"
• These are all still requirements needed during both LE-7 Permit season and open burning season.

If you have any questions about air pollution permitting, feel free to contact the Northern Sierra Air Quality District at (530) 274-9360

• Check upcoming weather, making sure its good conditions for burning. Weather you want for your burn window is:
  • Not too hot
  • Not to humid or too dry
  • Not too calm or too windy
• 7-Day Forecast for Grass Valley
  • Make sure you select your location
• Tabular Weather Forecast: National Weather Service
• Check if its a Burn Day in Nevada, Sierra, or Plumas County: Burn Day Status - Northern Sierra Air Quality Management District or call 530-274-7928
  • Open burning is ALWAYS BANNED in the city limits of Grass Valley, Nevada City and Portola.

 Its good to have an idea of how many people you may need for your prescribed burn. Here's a table that may help! Most of these people will be on your control line, making sure the fire doesn't escape or burn anything of concern or value. Others may be helping with putting fire on the ground.

Notes:

• Your unit perimeter can help estimate the amount of hose you'll need around your unit.
• If you and your crew have a lot of experience and have more industrial fire-suppressing equipment, then you may have people spread out further than 75 ft.

• California Prescribed Burn Association, calpba.org - lots of inspiration and resources here​​!
• Download a simple burn plan that works for most landowners. The PBA can help you develop your map, burn prescription, etc. , or you can work directly with CAL FIRE and do it on your own.
• Download a longer burn plan template that works for more complex burns
• "Liability Explainer": What Happens If Something Goes Wrong During A Burn or Burn Prep
• CAL FIRE webpage where you can learn about and apply for burn permits (pile broadcast/ understory/area burns, oversize burn piles or many piles, biochar kilns)
• More permissible burn day information: Northern Sierra Air Quality Management District (NSAQMD)
• More in-depth information from Oregon State University Extension covering:
  • Prescribed Fire: Why we burn
  • The Ecological Effects of Fire 
  • Fire Behavior 
  • Fuels 
  • Planning a Prescribed Burn 
  • Carrying out and Managing a Prescribed Burn 
  • Fire Weather 
  • Smoke Management 
  • Ignition Techniques and Tools
  • Monitoring and Evaluation