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Paradise council adopts broadcast‑burning permit and introduces ordinance after months of planning
Summary
Council adopted a resolution adding a broadcast burning permit and introduced an ordinance setting requirements, outside a defined exclusion zone, with certifications, notifications and Air Quality requirements.
The Paradise Town Council voted to adopt a resolution adding a broadcast burning permit to the town’s land‑clearing permitting process and introduced an ordinance to establish requirements for permitted broadcast (prescribed) burning inside town limits.
Fire Chief Jason Finney told the council the measure is intended to allow carefully planned broadcast burning under permit in larger parcels while limiting smoke impacts in denser parts of town. Under the resolution and draft ordinance, broadcast burning permits would be available for single parcels larger than five acres or for multiple contiguous parcels under common ownership that together exceed five acres. Permits would be time‑limited to permitted burn periods and would require a written burn plan prepared by a state‑certified prescribed fire burn boss (CARX burn boss) and submitted to the fire department for approval.
Chief Finney said the burn plan must meet multiple controls: control lines and unit preparation, a prescription for weather and fuel conditions, a holding and ignition plan, water and holding resources on site, pre‑burn and day‑of notifications to neighbors and to air‑quality authorities, and a post‑burn mop‑up period. He noted that projects over 10 acres or below 1,000 feet elevation must submit a smoke management plan to the air district. He also described work on a memorandum of understanding to allow the Prescribed Burn Association (PBA) and Resource Conservation District (RCD) to operate in the town and said the Cal Fire Claims Fund provides supplemental insurance for approved burn projects through 2027.
The resolution also establishes a town permit, requires confirmation of a certified CARX burn boss before issuance and references the air‑quality permit fee (approximately $30 plus $1 per acre). Chief Finney emphasized the permit is an optional “tool in the toolbox,” not a requirement for landowners.
Why it matters: council members and staff said the ordinance is intended to expand hazardous‑fuels‑reduction options for larger parcels while attempting to manage smoke impacts in residential and commercial areas. The ordinance creates an exclusion zone (roughly bounded by Pearson and Skyway and Pence Road) where broadcast burning would not be allowed, and it adds procedural safeguards—professional burn boss certification, burn plans, notifications and coordination with the air district.
Council action and vote: Council member Bowen moved adoption, seconded by Council member Lisonbee. The council recorded aye votes from Council member Bowen, Council member Cullerton, Council member Lang, Council member Lassonde and Mayor Crowder; the motion passed and the ordinance (ord. 25‑47) was introduced for further processing.
Ending: Chief Finney said the town will proceed with the permit framework next year and pursue arrangements to provide lower‑cost burn options through partnerships with the PBA and RCD.
