Burning Land-Clearing Debris in Brunswick County, NC
Can you burn land-clearing debris around Shallotte? Sometimes, but it's the most tightly ruled part of clearing in Brunswick County. Three sets of rules stack up: the state air quality rule, which applies everywhere, towns included; the NC Forest Service permit, which Brunswick, as a high-hazard county, requires at any hour outside town limits; and county and town fire rules near homes. Here's each one, the setbacks and hours, who to call, and why so many jobs here end up mulched or hauled instead. Checked against state law and county and town pages in October 2026.
The short version
- Get the Forest Service permit. Outside town limits, Brunswick requires an NC Forest Service permit for any open burn more than 100 feet from an occupied dwelling, at any hour. It's free and available online.
- 500 feet from the neighbors. Land-clearing fires must be at least 500 feet from any occupied dwelling or building not on the property, unless every occupant within 500 feet signs a waiver approved by DEQ beforehand.
- Plant material from the site only. No tires, shingles, treated wood, or construction debris, and no hauling brush in from elsewhere.
- Daytime starts. Light between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., and add nothing between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m.
- Not on bad air days or during bans. No burning when the forecast is Code Orange or worse, or when the Forest Service or any government has banned burning.
- Over 5 acres. A clearing burn of more than 5 contiguous acres needs a special Forest Service permit that isn't available online.
- Near homes. County or town fire rules apply within 100 feet of an occupied dwelling, and a county burn ban that began June 8, 2026 prohibits burning within 100 feet of any structure in its unincorporated areas. It was still in effect in September 2026; check the county's Burn Ban page for its current status.
The state air quality rule
North Carolina's open burning rule, administered by DEQ's Division of Air Quality, applies everywhere, including inside towns. Burning for land clearing is allowed without an air permit only when all of its conditions are met:
- Winds at ignition, and as forecast by the National Weather Service, blow away from any area smoke could affect, including public roads within 250 feet.
- The fire is at least 500 feet from any dwelling, group of dwellings, commercial or institutional building, or other occupied structure not on the property. Buildings housing farm or domestic animals count as occupied. Signed waivers from the occupants (renters, not landlords, sign for rentals) can reduce that, but only with the regional supervisor's approval, and never near an occupied school, day care, or hospital.
- "Only land-cleared plant growth is burned." Kerosene or diesel may be used to start it; heavy oils, tires, shingles, and other synthetic or construction materials may not.
- Burning starts only between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., and nothing is added between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m.
- Nothing is lit or added while the Forest Service or another government agency has banned burning.
- Debris isn't carried off-site or over public roads to be burned, except to a permitted air curtain burner or a site meeting the rule's narrow limits.
No open burning may start on a day forecast as Code Orange or worse (an air quality index of 101 or more). Check the air quality forecast or call 919-707-8400. The rule says "land clearing" doesn't include regularly scheduled maintenance or property clean-up. DAQ doesn't issue burn permits, and a Forest Service or local permit doesn't excuse the air rule. Penalties, per DEQ's FAQ, can reach "$25,000 per day, per violation," and a landowner who allowed or benefited from the burn can be held responsible.
The NC Forest Service permit
State law (G.S. 106-942) lists Brunswick among North Carolina's high-hazard counties. In those counties, the NC Forest Service says a permit is "always required for open burning that will take place more than 100 feet from an occupied dwelling," with no hour limit as in other counties. The law covers fires in or within 500 feet of woodland the state protects, which excludes land within a town's jurisdiction.
- How to get one: online at ncforestservice.gov/burnpermits, at the Brunswick County office at 1159 Green Swamp Road, Supply (910-755-7772), or from a local burn permitting agent.
- Cost: free. State law says no charge may be made for a permit.
- What it is: the Forest Service calls a permit "not a request for permission to burn but is instead a notification that a burn may occur."
- More than 5 contiguous acres: a special permit, with its own conditions: winds blowing away from towns, developments, and major highways; 500 feet from dwellings in a mainly residential area unless the occupants agree; no heavy oils, asphalt, or rubber; and burning started only between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., unless a ranger allows otherwise in writing.
- Bans override permits. The Commissioner of Agriculture can ban all open burning, permit or not, and cancel permits in hazardous fire conditions.
County and town rules
The county Fire Marshal's office regulates open burning within 100 feet of an occupied dwelling in the unincorporated county, and towns regulate it within their limits. Per the county's FAQ, the Fire Marshal "does not issue open burning permits" and doesn't regulate or permit land-clearing burns; past 100 feet, the state agencies above do.
On June 8, 2026, the county banned burning near homes in the unincorporated areas: "All burning within 100 feet of any structure is banned within the unincorporated areas of Brunswick County." The notice, last updated October 13, 2026, says the ban doesn't apply to Forest Service permits and stays in place "until conditions improve." Check the county's Burn Ban page or the Fire Marshal (910-253-2041) for its current status.
- Shallotte. The town's code requires an NC Forest Service permit and bars burning whenever the Forest Service, the county, or another agency has banned it. The code also still carries an older open-burning section with a town permit and a 1,000-foot setback for land-clearing fires. Call the town's fire code official (910-253-5383) before burning inside town limits.
- Calabash. The town's burning ordinance requires developers to get a permit from Town Hall and keep burn material at least 300 feet from a property line, and it sends burning more than 500 feet from an occupied dwelling to the Forest Service.
- Other towns. Ocean Isle Beach, Sunset Beach, Holden Beach, Carolina Shores, and Varnamtown regulate burning within their limits. Call town hall first.
In April 2026, WECT reported that county commissioners asked the General Assembly for authority to regulate large land-clearing burns, after residents complained about smoke. No change in the law had been confirmed when this page was written.
Yard waste is a different rule
Burning leaves, limbs, and stumps from your own yard falls under a separate part of the air rule. It's allowed only where no public pickup service is available (DEQ says a paid private company doesn't count as public pickup), on the property where the material grew, with no trash or treated wood, starting no earlier than 8 a.m., and not during a ban. The Forest Service permit and the county's 100-foot rules still apply.
Storm debris and air curtain burners
Vegetative debris from a hurricane, tornado, or flood can be burned with permission from DEQ's regional air quality supervisor, under the same conditions as land-clearing fires. An air curtain burner, a box or pit with a fan blowing a curtain of air over the fire, can be used closer than 500 feet if it meets the rule, and Brunswick County's FAQ says DEQ's Wilmington Regional Office regulates them here.
Smoke complaints
For a land-clearing fire that seems too close, too smoky, or burning the wrong things, call DEQ's Wilmington Regional Office (910-796-7215), which enforces the air rule. For burning near homes in the unincorporated county, the Fire Marshal's office is 910-253-2041. Outside town limits, burn permits come from the Forest Service's county office (910-755-7772).
The alternatives
- Mulch it in place. Forestry mulching leaves nothing to burn.
- Grind it with a tub grinder or chipper and use or sell the chips.
- Haul it. The county landfill in Bolivia accepts land-clearing debris from Brunswick County only. Its fee page lists yard debris 4 feet or shorter at $22.50 a ton and logs longer than 4 feet at $45 a ton, and doesn't mention stumps, so call before loading them.
Burning questions
Do I need a permit to burn brush in my yard?
Outside town limits, yes, if the fire is more than 100 feet from an occupied dwelling: Brunswick is a high-hazard county. Within 100 feet, county or town fire rules apply, and the county's 2026 ban covers burning within 100 feet of any structure in unincorporated areas. Inside a town, call town hall.
Can a contractor burn clearing debris on my lot in a subdivision?
Only if the fire can be 500 feet from every neighbor's occupied building, or every occupant within 500 feet signs a waiver approved by DEQ. In most subdivisions that isn't realistic, so the debris gets mulched, ground, or hauled.
What hours can I burn?
Under the air rule, land-clearing fires start between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., with nothing added overnight. Special permits for more than 5 acres start between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Is there a burn ban right now?
Check the county's Burn Ban page and the NC Forest Service's burn permit site before every burn. Statewide bans and air quality alerts change daily.
How we help
If a burn won't work on your lot, the debris still has to go somewhere. Call or send a short request with the property's location, its rough size, and what you'd like done, and we'll pass it along to one independent contractor who works in southern Brunswick County. They walk the land, give you a written quote, and leave the decision with you. The referral is free.
Want a local contractor to walk your land?
Call or send a short request. There's no charge for the referral.