The County of Albemarle, in an effort to achieve and maintain such levels of air quality as to protect human health, welfare, and the safety of its residents, has regulated open air burning within the County.

What is open air burning? The burning of any matter in such a manner that the products resulting from combustion are emitted directly into the atmosphere without passing through a stack, duct, or chimney.

View Entire Text of the Applicable Burn Laws

View Current Reported Open Air Burns

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Permissible Open Air Burning

Property Maintenance

Open burning is permitted for the disposal of leaves and tree, yard, and garden trimmings originating from and located on the premises of private property, provided that the following conditions are met:

• The burning takes place on the premises of the private property.
• The location of the burning is not less than 300 feet from any occupied building, unless the occupants have given prior permission, other than a building located on the property on which the burning is conducted.

Land Clearing

Open burning is permitted for the disposal of debris waste resulting from property maintenance, from the development or modification of roads and highways, parking areas, railroad tracks, pipelines, power and communication lines, buildings or building areas, sanitary landfills, or any other clearing operations which may be approved by the Fire Official, provided that all of the following conditions are met:

• All reasonable effort shall be made to minimize the amount of material burned, with the number and size of the debris piles approved by the Fire Official.
• The material to be burned shall consist of brush, stumps, and similar debris waste originating from and located on the premises, and shall not include demolition material.
• The burning shall be at least 2,000 feet, or 1,000 feet when using an incinerator device, from any occupied building not on the same property on which the burning is conducted, unless the occupant of the building has given prior written permission for the burning.
• The burning shall be conducted at the greatest distance practicable from highways and air fields.
• The burning shall be attended at all times, and conducted to ensure the best possible combustion with a minimum of smoke being produced.
• The burning shall not be allowed to smolder beyond the minimum period of time necessary for the destruction of the materials.
• The burning shall be conducted only between 8:00 am and 8:00 pm.
• The burning shall be conducted only Monday through Friday.
• The burning shall not be conducted during the restricted dates of February 15 through April 30 of each year.
• The burning shall be conducted only when the prevailing winds are away from any city, town, or built-up area.

To apply for an open burn permit for land clearing/debris waste disposal, visit our Permits and Inspections page.

Resources
Albemarle County Code – Fire Protection
Virginia Department of Forestry