Humboldt County Municipal Code Ch. 1 Prevention and Control

Sections: Areas of Applicability. Prohibition against Uncontrolled Fires. Permit Requirements. Industrial Operations. Approved Methods for Burning Industrial Waste Material. Powers of Fire Prevention Officials. Penalty. 951-1. Areas of Applicability. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to lands which have been classified by the State Department of Forestry as areas of State Forest Service or any other Federal agency, or to lands within incorporated cities or towns. (Ord. 231, § 1, 4/8/1946)

951-2. Prohibition against Uncontrolled Fires. It shall be unlawful for any person, to willfully or knowingly allow fire to burn uncontrolled on land owned or controlled by such person. The term “uncontrolled fire” as used in this section means any fire burning on lands covered wholly or in part by timber, brush, grass, grain, or any other inflammable material, which is not burning within the confines of cleared firebreaks or which is burning with such velocity that it could not be readily extinguished with the ordinary tools commonly available to private property. (Ord. 231, § 2, 4/8/1946) 951-3. Permit Requirements. It shall be unlawful for any person, to set fire to or burn any inflammable vegetation or waste, debris or any other inflammable material, either on his or its own lands or the property of another, during that period between April 15th and December 1st of any year, and such other times of the year when unusual fire danger shall be declared to exist by the Resources Agency of the State of California, without first obtaining a written permit from the chief, or his agent, of the fire department having jurisdiction within a lawfully formed fire district, if such burning is to be done within such fire district, or if such burning is to be done on lands outside of any lawfully formed fire district and not within areas declared to be State responsibility, the permit shall be obtained from the nearest representative of the Director of the Department of Forestry, unless there is another constituted fire control authority charged with the prevention of fire in that area in which the burning is to be done; in such case the permit shall be obtained from such authority. Permits for burning issued under the authority of this chapter shall stipulate that the permittee shall understand the fire prevention laws of the State of California and the Humboldt County and of the fire district in which the burning is to be done. Such permits shall also stipulate that no expense shall be incurred against the County, fire district or State by reason of such burning; they shall also state the general rules of reasonable precaution for the guidance of the permittee, provided that permits issued by the Director of the Department of Forestry’s agent shall be in accord with the standards set 597 forth by that agency. Permits shall not be required when such material to be burned is in small heaps of piles and surrounded by adequate cleared firebreaks in dooryard premises, corrals, gardens, or plowed fields, or in an adequate container or incinerator with adequate clearance free of flammable material surrounding it. (Ord. 231, § 3, 4/8/1946) 951-4. Industrial Operations. It shall be unlawful for any person, engaged in industrial operations which produce waste materials of a flammable nature in excessive amounts so as to become a fire hazard or a menace to the property where it is produced, or to adjacent property, to allow such material to accumulate to such extent that hazard or menace is created. (Ord. 231, § 4, 4/8/1946)

951-5. Approved Methods for Burning Industrial Waste Material. It shall be unlawful for any person, coming under the provisions of § 951-4 of this chapter to dispose of flammable waste material incidental to such operations by burning or use of fire unless such burning or fire is contained in an adequate burning device which will prevent the escape of fire or sparks. Burning such material may be done without an enclosed burner if such material is surrounded by an area cleared of all flammable materials for a distance of four hundred feet (400') radiant from the material to be burned. The provisions of § 951-3 of this chapter relating to the time of year and obtaining of permits shall apply to this section. (Ord. 231, § 5, 4/8/1946) 951-6. Powers of Fire Prevention Officials. The chief and all lawfully constituted members of each lawfully formed fire district, having taken the oath of office, shall have the powers of peace officers within their respective districts for the purpose of enforcing the provisions of this chapter and all other chapters of this Code relating to fire prevention of the State fire prevention laws. (Ord. 231, § 6, 4/8/1946) 951-7. Penalty. Any person that violates any of the provisions of this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor. (Ord. 231, § 7, 4/8/1946) § 952-1 through 952-3.