Brush Clearance Requirements Owners of property located in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFHSZ) shall maintain their property in accordance with the Fire Code (L.A.M.C. 57.322). Year-round compliance shall be maintained as described below on all native brush, weeds, grass, trees and hazardous vegetation within 200 feet of any structures/buildings, whether those structures are on the owner’s property or adjoining properties, and within 10 feet of any combustible fence or roadway/driveway used for vehicular travel. 1. Maintain all weeds and grasses at a maximum height of 3 inches. NOTE: Due to soil erosion, your Brush Clearance Unit neither requires nor recommends the removal of roots or the practice of raking the soil (cutting the vegetation down below the soil surface). The requirement is to maintain hazardous vegetation (brush/grass/weeds) at a maximum height of 3 inches. 2. Maintain the lower 1/3rd of trees and shrubs by removing all leafy foliage, twigs, and branches up to a maximum of 6 feet from the ground (i.e., any tree 18 feet or higher requires only 6 feet of clearance). NOTE: This requirement does not apply to well-maintained fruit trees, privacy hedges, and ornamental shrubbery (e.g., Italian cypress trees) provided they are free of all dead and dry material. 3. Remove all dead trees and shrubs. 4. Maintain 5 feet of vertical clearance between roof surfaces and portions of overhanging trees and shrubs (i.e., any overhanging foliage must be at least 5 feet above the roof). 5. Remove any portion of a tree or shrub within 10-foot radius of a chimney outlet. 6. Maintain the roofs of all structures free of leaves, needles, twigs and other combustible matter. 7. Remove all dead/dry undergrowth and material within trees and shrubs to include all dead or dry palm fronds/branches. 8. Once brush clearance is conducted, remove and safely dispose of all cut or bagged vegetation, all dead trees and all debris. This includes all combustible junk, trash or debris that may be on your property, regardless of how it got there. Combustible debris may include, but is not limited to, paper trash, cardboard boxes, household trash, fabric/clothing, plastic, rubber/tires, or piles of yard waste. 9. Cut vegetation may be machine processed (chipped) and spread as ground cover (mulch) so it does not exceed 3 inches in depth within 30 feet of structures and no more than 6 inches in depth 30+ feet from structures/buildings. Machine processed/chipped material shall not be placed within 10 feet of combustible fences or road surfaces.
1
Rev. 5/23/2017