Kittitas County Community Development Services provided the following Public Service Announcement:
Outdoor Burning Regulations

Make sure all open burning is not within 50 feet of any structure or combustible material. Burn piles must be under 10 feet in diameter.

Kittitas County, WA – 04/03/2019 – Spring is finally here and many property owners may be planning on spring cleaning and burning outdoors. For those living in un-incorporated areas of Kittitas County, here are the outdoor burning regulations. Also includes information about recreational fires.

Piles of natural vegetation for burning shall be no greater than 10′ in diameter, and no more than 10′ in height. If prior approval is obtained by the Fire Marshal and local fire district, pile sizes may be increased. It shall be the responsibility of the property owner to contact the local fire district to determine if a permit will be required, as well as to notify the fire district upon commencement of burning.The following rules shall apply to all Outdoor Burning at all times:

  1. The burning of garbage, trash, rubbish, or utilization of burn barrels, etc. is illegal; (this includes construction debris and any milled or dimensional lumber treated or not.)
  2. No open burning within 50 feet of any structure or combustible material;
  3. Pile size shall be no greater than 10′ in diameter, unless prior approval to increase pile size is obtained from the Fire Marshal and fire district;
  4. No more than one pile may be burned on any property at the same time;
  5. Piles may be stored on a property no longer than twelve months;
  6. Conditions that may cause the fire to spread shall be eliminated prior to ignition;
  7. No open burning shall occur when wind speeds or gusts exceed 10 mph, unless prior approval is obtained by the Fire Marshal and local fire district:
  8. A person capable of utilizing fire extinguishing equipment such as buckets, shovels, garden hoses connected to a water supply, fire extinguishers, heavy equipment, etc., shall be on site at all times; and
  9. Fire extinguishing equipment such as buckets, shovels, garden hoses connected to a water supply, fire extinguishers, heavy equipment or any equipment that will provide suppression of the proposed fire, shall be on site at all times while the fire is burning.

Recreational fires.

Recreational fires are allowed in unincorporated areas of Kittitas County, provided that no restrictions or burn bans are in effect.The following rules for Recreational Fires shall apply at all times:

  1. Recreational fires, camp fires, cook fires, etc. shall be no greater than 3′ x 3′ in diameter and no more than 2′ in height;
  2. No recreational fires shall be located within 25 feet of any structure;
  3. A person capable of utilizing fire extinguishing equipment such as buckets, shovels, garden hoses connected to a water supply, fire extinguishers, heavy equipment, etc., shall be on site at all times; and
  4. Fire extinguishing equipment such as buckets, shovels, garden hoses connected to a water supply, fire extinguishers, heavy equipment or any equipment that will provide suppression of the proposed fire, shall be on site at all times while the fire is burning.

Check to see if a county burn ban is in place prior to burning. There are two types of burn bans – Fire Safety and Air Quality.

Check with the Department of Ecology (DOE) to determine if there is an air quality burn ban in effect.  Their number is 509-575-2490 or https://www.ecy.wa.gov/

Contact your local fire district to inquire if they will require a permit.

If you are planning an outdoor event where you wish to burn or are a campground and a burn ban is in effect, you may be eligible to obtain a temporary permit.  Contact the Fire Marshal’s office at 509-962-7000.

For residents living in incorporated areas, contact your local fire department for outdoor burning information.