Directory
Everything on this site
Searches titles, descriptions, section headings and body text. Runs entirely in your browser.
Start here
Zone 0 status: adopted, then withdrawn from OAL
No date is set. California's Zone 0 rule was adopted August 19, 2026 and withdrawn from OAL review on September 8. Not in effect, not pending.
California Zone 0 fencing: the complete guide
California's Zone 0 rules for fences and gates: what the adopted regulation requires, who it covers, which materials qualify, and the ordinances in force.
Everything in the first five feet
Everything the first five feet covers: fencing, mulch, plants, decks, sheds, firewood and pergolas, with what each rule requires and what it costs to fix.
What is Zone 0? California's ember-resistant zone, explained
Zone 0, or Zone Zero, is California's five-foot ember-resistant zone. Adopted August 19, 2026 and not yet in effect. What it means for your fence.
No, you don't have to tear out your wood fence yet: Zone 0 myths vs. the actual rule
California adopted Zone 0 on August 19, 2026, and it still does not force you to tear out your wood fence. Six postcard myths vs. the actual rule text.
Does Zone 0 apply to your home? SRA, LRA and hazard maps decoded
California's Zone 0 rule covers all SRA hazard classes but only Very High zones in the LRA. Decode the maps and check your address in minutes.
The rules, category by category
Zone 0 fence requirements in California: the adopted rule, section by section
California's adopted Zone 0 fence rules, decoded section by section: what is required, what is not, and why the LRA and SRA texts are not identical.
Zone 0 mulch rules in California: what the adopted rule bans and what to put down instead
California's Zone 0 rule bans bark and wood-chip mulch within 5 feet of homes: the verbatim text, the erosion exception, timing, and what to use instead.
Zone 0 plants allowed in California: what the adopted rule actually lets you keep
Fire safe landscaping in the five feet next to a California house: which plants, lawns, pots and trees the adopted Zone 0 rule actually lets you keep.
Zone 0 deck requirements in California: the five-foot zone starts at your deck, not your wall
California's Zone 0 rule measures the 5-foot ember zone from attached decks and stairs, including noncombustible ones. What it requires underneath.
Sheds and outbuildings within 5 feet of the house: what California's adopted Zone 0 rule requires
California's Zone 0 rule bars sheds within 5 feet of a house unless entirely noncombustible. What counts, the 3-5 year timeline, and your options.
Firewood storage in California's Zone 0: the free fix to make this weekend
California's Zone 0 rule bans firewood within 5 feet of the home. Verbatim text, Berkeley and San Diego rules in force, and where the woodpile can go.
Pergolas, trellises, and yard décor in Zone 0: what the rules actually say
Attached pergolas move where Zone 0 starts. What California's rule, Berkeley, and San Diego say about trellises, planters, privacy walls, and decor.
Zone 0 enforcement timeline in California: what happens when, and to whom
Zone 0 was adopted August 19, 2026 but no deadline runs until it takes effect. The phase-in schedule, the fence runway, penalties, and San Diego's clock.
Materials and the retrofit
What counts as a noncombustible fence material (and what fails)
Which fire resistant fence materials pass ASTM E136, and why vinyl, composite and fire-retardant wood fail. There is no such thing as a fireproof fence.
The five-foot fix: anatomy of a noncombustible fence transition
What California's Zone 0 rule requires where a fence meets the house: the 5 foot noncombustible fence section, measured and explained piece by piece.
Metal vs wood gate: what the fire rules actually say
Wood gates fail ASTM E136, and California's Zone 0 rule bars them attached to the house. What a metal gate gets you, and when wood is still fine.
Aluminum vs. steel vs. chain link: which metal for your 5-foot Zone 0 fence section?
Aluminum, steel, and chain link all pass ASTM E136 for California's Zone 0 five-foot fence span. How to choose on weight, rust, privacy, gates, and DIY.
The candle wick on your property line: how fences spread wildfire to homes
Embers, not flame fronts, ignite most homes. How a wood fence acts as a wick carrying fire to your wall, and what a 5-foot noncombustible break does.
Insurance, money and proof
The fence credit written into California insurance regulation: Safer from Wildfires, explained
California insurers must credit noncombustible fencing within 5 feet of the home under Safer from Wildfires. What the discount is worth, and how to claim it.
The Safer from Wildfires twelve mitigation measures, explained
All twelve Safer from Wildfires mitigation measures under 10 CCR 2644.9: what California insurers must credit, honest discount sizes, and how to claim each one.
IBHS Wildfire Prepared Home: the fencing standard insurers actually check
The IBHS Wildfire Prepared Home standard allows only metal or concrete fencing within 5 feet of the home; vinyl is banned. Verbatim text and carrier tie-ins.
Prove it or it didn't happen: documenting your fence upgrade for insurance
California insurers must credit noncombustible fencing within five feet, but only if they know. The photos, ASTM E136 proof, and certificate to submit.
Grants for wildfire home hardening in California: who actually pays for Zone 0 work
Seven California programs pay toward Zone 0 fence and hardscape work, including Montecito's $10,000 reimbursement. Who qualifies, and who pays the rest.
There is no California home hardening tax credit: here is where the claim comes from
The widely repeated 50% California home hardening tax credit does not exist. SB 269 and SB 952 both died. What the FTB analysis actually is, and what does pay.
Where you live
Every California jurisdiction we can prove has a Zone 0 rule in force
Thirty-five California jurisdictions already require an ember-resistant zone, verified from their own adopted text. No state body keeps this list, so we do.
We read all fifty-eight county codes in search of Zone 0. Here is what California's local wildfire law actually says.
Fifty-eight county codes read for Zone 0 rules: what local wildfire law says, which codes change meaning when a state rule lands, and the one that says Zone 0.
Where Zone 0 is already law: every California jurisdiction with rules in force
Where Zone 0 is already enforceable law in California: every jurisdiction we can prove, with dates, verbatim fence rules, and how to check yours.
Does anyone actually inspect defensible space? CAL FIRE's own numbers say yes
CAL FIRE recorded 35,817 defensible space inspections in July 2026, 82.6% of those inspected compliant. What the numbers show, and the two things they do not.
San Diego's Zone 0 fence ordinance is already in force. Here are the real deadlines
San Diego's Zone 0 fence ordinance (SDMC 512.0604) is in force now. The real 2026–2029 deadlines, the verbatim fence rules, and who is actually covered.
Zone 0 in Alameda County: in force in two Berkeley areas, and now in Fremont's hills
Berkeley's EMBER ordinance binds two hillside areas, and Fremont's 2025 WUI ordinance adds a fence rule stricter than the state's. What is verified, dated.
Zone 0 in Alpine County: the smallest county wired its code to the statute Zone 0 lands in
Alpine's code requires defensible space per PRC 4291 as it may be amended in the future: the seventh code wired to the state's law, verified from current text.
Zone 0 in Amador County: the only county code in California that says "Zone 0," and it says "recommended"
Amador's 2022 ordinance is the only California county code that names Zone 0, and it makes the five feet a recommendation while 30 and 100 feet are duties.
Zone 0 in Butte County: one county, both answers
Paradise requires noncombustible fencing within five feet of any structure, existing included. The county's own five-foot rule never mentions fences.
Zone 0 in Calaveras County: the code that adopts the state's rules before the state finishes writing them
Calaveras has no Zone 0 rule yet, but its 2017 code adopts the state's defensible space sections by reference, so filing day may change the county code itself.
Zone 0 in Colusa County: fire law written for rice country, read through the archive
No Colusa County Zone 0 rule exists in anything we could read. Three-foot crop firebreaks, a 2016 Fire Code adoption, and real fire country on the west side.
Zone 0 in Contra Costa County: Moraga-Orinda's rule reaches two feet, not five
Moraga-Orinda's Zone 0 has been in force since March 2023, but its ground-cover rule reaches two feet and it requires no noncombustible fence at all.
Zone 0 in Del Norte County: the 1991 model on the redwood coast, re-enacted in 2016
No Del Norte County Zone 0 rule exists. The 1991 fire-safe model, re-enacted in 2016, binds new development only, and noncombustible is nowhere in the code.
Zone 0 in El Dorado County: no local rule in force, and the County says so in writing
No El Dorado jurisdiction has a Zone 0 rule in force, and the County says so in writing. What Chapter 8.09 and South Lake Tahoe actually require.
Zone 0 in Fresno County: a defensible-space chapter for exactly eighteen parcels
No Fresno County Zone 0 rule exists. Its one defensible-space chapter covers eighteen bluff parcels and excludes fences. What applies in Shaver Lake country.
Zone 0 in Glenn County: a code the county publishes itself, with no fire chapter in it
Glenn County has no fire ordinance of any kind: a 1974 weed-abatement chapter and a clean 2025 state-code adoption. Read from the county's own official PDFs.
Zone 0 in Humboldt County: a code we read through a blocked door, and a 1946 fire law still inside
No Humboldt County Zone 0 rule exists in anything we could read. A 1946 fire law, the 1991 fire-safe model, and one of the state's lowest inspection pass rates.
Zone 0 in Imperial County: a fire code from another era, in the county with the least to burn
No Imperial County Zone 0 rule exists, and little mapped hazard for the state rule to reach. The insurance credit is the fact with money attached here.
Zone 0 in Inyo County: every unincorporated acre is a WUI Fire Area, and the code is wired to flip
No Inyo County Zone 0 rule exists yet, but a 2020 ordinance makes the whole county a WUI Fire Area and points its code at the statutes Zone 0 lands in.
Zone 0 in Kern County: the mountain communities' law is the county code, and it has no five-foot rule
No Kern County Zone 0 rule exists. Frazier Park, Kernville and the mountain communities answer to the county code, read fresh from its November 2025 rewrite.
Zone 0 in Kings County: weeds, fireworks, and almost nowhere for a wildfire to go
No Kings County Zone 0 rule exists. Weeds and fireworks are the whole fire layer, and the Kettleman Hills carry the county's only wildland track.
Zone 0 in Lake County: the county that burned most has a thirty-foot rule, a failing grade, and money for fences anyway
No Lake County Zone 0 rule exists. A 2019 thirty-foot ordinance, the worst inspection pass rate we have recorded, and a grant that pays for fence replacement.
Zone 0 in Lassen County: the five-foot idea lives in this code as a bargaining chip
Lassen has no Zone 0 mandate, but its code offers five feet of noncombustible material as a trade for a setback, the only such bargain in 58 county codes.
Zone 0 in Los Angeles County: what applies where
Where California's adopted Zone 0 rule reaches in Los Angeles County, from Malibu to Altadena, plus LACoFD and LAFD inspections, fees, and what to do now.
Zone 0 in Madera County: Oakhurst and Bass Lake answer to a code about grazing permits
No Madera County Zone 0 rule exists. Oakhurst, Bass Lake and Coarsegold are unincorporated Creek Fire country, and state law does nearly all the work today.
Zone 0 in Marin County: the money is in place, the rule is not
No Marin jurisdiction has a Zone 0 rule we could confirm. What it has is money: San Rafael's per-fence grant figures, and Novato's funded but unposted window.
Zone 0 in Mariposa County: a 1980 clearing duty at the Yosemite gate, read through a door the publisher left open
No Mariposa County Zone 0 rule exists. A 1980 countywide clearing duty, a warden exemption for nonflammable buildings, and the 2025 WUI code unamended.
Zone 0 in Mendocino County: a 2021 fire-hazard ordinance that stops ninety-five feet short
No Mendocino County Zone 0 rule exists. The 2021 hazardous vegetation ordinance has real teeth but no five-foot band, and any state rule lands on the SRA clock.
Zone 0 in Merced County: the county code that barely mentions fire at all
No Merced County Zone 0 rule exists, and almost no county fire law at all. State law does the work, from the Merced River canyon to the Diablo grass.
Zone 0 in Modoc County: a 2008 chapter that adopts the maps and points at the law
No Modoc County Zone 0 rule exists. Its 2008 chapter adopts the state hazard maps and routes state law; nothing county-made touches the first five feet.
Zone 0 in Mono County: the county that wrote the sentence the Eastern Sierra's codes are wired with
No Mono County Zone 0 rule exists yet, but its 2008 defensible-space chapter points at the statutes Zone 0 lands in. What applies from Walker to June Lake.
Zone 0 in Monterey County: a hundred-foot county, its unreadable cities finally read
No Monterey County Zone 0 rule exists. What the county, Salinas and Soledad codes say, why Big Sur answers to the county, and the two unreadable cities.
Zone 0 in Napa County: a rule in force since 2021 that never mentions fences
Unincorporated Napa County has required an ember resistant zone within five feet since May 2021, but only for new construction, and it names no fence at all.
Zone 0 in Nevada County: three ember-resistant zones already in force, and none requires a noncombustible fence
Nevada County has three ember-resistant zone rules in force, and none requires a noncombustible fence. What each one says, quoted from primary code.
Zone 0 in Orange County: what applies where
Where California's adopted Zone 0 rule reaches in Orange County: SRA canyons, Very High city zones, and the local rule in force in Laguna Beach.
Zone 0 in Placer County: Auburn's rule reaches new construction only
Auburn's ember-resistant zone is the only Zone 0 rule we found in force in Placer County, and it binds new construction only. Plus maps, agencies, rebates.
Zone 0 in Plumas County: after the Dixie Fire, the code still speaks 1992
Plumas has no Zone 0 rule; after the Dixie Fire its code gained rebuilding chapters, not fire rules. What the 1992 fire-safe chapter says and what comes next.
Zone 0 in Riverside County: what applies where
No Riverside County Zone 0 ordinance exists yet. See where the adopted state rule reaches, which communities are mapped Very High, and what to do now.
Zone 0 in Sacramento County: the capital's fire code is three months old, and the five-foot idea is not in it
Sacramento County's fire law: the 2025 Fire Code with admin-only changes, plus a 1984 weed rule whose firebreak protects combustible fences. No Zone 0 in it.
Zone 0 in San Benito County: no fire chapter in the code, and a 99 percent pass rate anyway
No San Benito County Zone 0 rule exists, and no county fire chapter at all. State law and a CAL FIRE contract deliver the best pass rate we have recorded.
Zone 0 in San Bernardino County: Redlands requires it, and the state rule would reach 3.6 percent of the county
Redlands mandates a Zone Zero for existing homes in High and Very High zones, with no fence rule. What else the county requires, and what it does not.
Zone 0 in San Diego County: what applies where
Where Zone 0 applies in San Diego County: the city ordinance in force, the county WUI code, and the adopted state rule, checked against primary sources.
Zone 0 in San Francisco: we read the 2025 fire code, and the word wildland never appears
No San Francisco Zone 0 rule exists: the 2025 fire code contains no wildland text at all. What the state rule could reach, and the check that settles it.
Zone 0 in San Joaquin County: a delta county that adopted the WUI code in January, with nothing in it for your fence
No San Joaquin County Zone 0 rule exists. The January 2026 WUI adoption carries administrative amendments only. What applies from Stockton to Corral Hollow.
Zone 0 in San Luis Obispo County: no local rule, and one city wired to the state's
No SLO County Zone 0 rule exists, but Morro Bay wired its code to the state regulation. What we read in five city codes, and what changes on filing day.
Zone 0 in San Mateo County: Woodside's rule is in force, and its fence line is written at six feet
Woodside Fire Protection District's Zone 0 has been in force since 2024, and its fence rule is written at six feet, not five. What it requires, and who pays.
Zone 0 in Santa Barbara County: who requires it, and who pays for it
Montecito Fire reimburses up to $10,000, with a Zone 0 section that names wood fencing. What is in force in Santa Barbara County, and what is only a draft.
Zone 0 in Santa Clara County: four cities adopted the wildland code, none adopted the zone
No Santa Clara County Zone 0 rule exists. What San Jose, Saratoga, Los Gatos and Monte Sereno actually adopted in 2025, and where the state rule will reach.
Zone 0 in Santa Cruz County: the chapter that sounds like the rule is an empty shell
No Santa Cruz County Zone 0 rule exists; the intermix chapter is repealed. What the county and city codes say, and where the state rule will reach.
Zone 0 in Shasta County: checked end to end, and the answer is a hundred feet, not five
No Shasta County Zone 0 rule exists. The post-Carr-Fire ordinance is a 100-foot regime, all three cities read negative, and the state rule is not yet in effect.
Zone 0 in Sierra County: the oldest fire law in our survey, in a code with almost no fire in it
No Sierra County Zone 0 rule exists in anything we could read. A 1928 fire law, a Class A roof rule from 1980, and a code with almost no fire in it.
Zone 0 in Siskiyou County: fire rules from 1968, pilot crews from 2024
No Siskiyou County Zone 0 rule exists; its fire regulations date to 1968 while pilot crews harden Mt. Shasta homes. What applies today and what arrives next.
Zone 0 in Solano County: the chapter nobody could read turned out to hold almost nothing
Solano's never-archived fire-hazards chapter holds a fireworks ban and district clearing authority. No Zone 0, no fence rule, and the county is now surveyed.
Zone 0 in Sonoma County: 5,636 structures lost in 2017, and no local ember-resistant zone rule
No Sonoma County jurisdiction has an adopted Zone 0 rule as of August 20, 2026. What is in force, where the state rule reaches, and which help closes soon.
Zone 0 in Stanislaus County: the survey's newest fire code, adopted unamended this February
No Stanislaus County Zone 0 rule exists. The February 2026 WUI code adoption is unamended and changes nothing for existing homes. What actually applies.
Zone 0 in Sutter County: one small mountain range, and fire law about burn piles and spark arresters
No Sutter County Zone 0 rule exists. Burn-pile and spark-arrester law for the rice flats, and state law around the Buttes, the county's one wildland.
Zone 0 in Tehama County: the Park Fire's county has 1991 fire law, and one sentence wired to the state's
No Tehama County Zone 0 rule exists. The Park Fire's county runs 1991 fire law, plus one firebreak sentence wired to the statutes Zone 0 lands in.
Zone 0 in Trinity County: no city halls, four megafires, and fire law facing the federal forest
No Trinity County Zone 0 rule exists. No cities either: county code and state law are the whole layer, in the county four megafires have crossed since 2017.
Zone 0 in Tulare County: the sequoias burned, the code got a debris chapter, and the five-foot rule is still coming
No Tulare County Zone 0 rule exists, and no county defensible-space ordinance either. What the SQF Complex changed, and what applies in Three Rivers country.
Zone 0 in Tuolumne County: the state is hardening homes here that no local law requires
No Tuolumne County Zone 0 rule exists, yet state pilot crews are hardening homes in three communities here. What the county and Sonora codes actually say.
Zone 0 in Ventura County: what applies where
Ventura County's fire district already enforces Zone 0 for new buildings. Which cities are mapped Very High, and what the adopted state rule adds.
Zone 0 in Yolo County: the fire code amendments are about who hears appeals
No Yolo County Zone 0 rule exists. The fire code amendments are administrative only, and state law does the work in the Capay hills the LNU fires reached.
Zone 0 in Yuba County: the county where the building official signs off on your firebreak
No Yuba County Zone 0 rule exists. The county writes the state's firebreak duties into its own code twice, and the building official certifies your site plan.
For contractors and trade
The contractor's guide to quoting Zone 0 fence work (without getting sued)
The rule scopes Zone 0 fence work to five feet, not the whole fence. Six quote scenarios, an assembly checklist, jurisdiction traps, and liability claims.
Find a contractor who gets the rule right
Get matched with California fencing contractors who quote the five-foot noncombustible span correctly and document it for your insurer.
Join the network: noncombustible materials for Zone 0
Manufacturers and distributors of ASTM E136 noncombustible materials: apply to join The Zone Zero Report materials network.
The compliant materials directory
A directory of materials that pass ASTM E136 for California's Zone 0, with the standard each product is tested to. Coming soon; join the list.
Tools
Is your home in a Zone 0 area? Check your address
Free Zone 0 address checker: enter a California address and query CAL FIRE's official hazard layers to see whether the adopted Zone 0 rule covers your home.
Walk your first five feet: the Zone 0 self-assessment
A free Zone 0 self-assessment: walk your first five feet, answer 16 questions, and get a prioritized punch list based on the adopted rule and the IBHS standard.
Reference
The Zone 0 glossary
Every term in California's Zone 0 and defensible space world, defined precisely: SRA, LRA, FHSZ, ASTM E136, WUI, Safer from Wildfires, IBHS.
Zone 0 fencing questions, answered straight
Is Zone 0 law? Must you replace a wood fence? Is vinyl allowed? Common Zone 0 fencing questions, answered against the regulation text.
Zone 0 developments, as they happen
Every Zone 0 development as it happens: Board of Forestry actions, local ordinance deadlines, insurance filings, and map changes, all dated and sourced.
What we still don't know about the adopted Zone 0 rule
Three things in California's adopted Zone 0 rule are genuinely unresolved: a lettering defect, a definition that split between tracks, and no effective date.
For journalists: what we track, what we have that nobody else does
Twelve verified Zone 0 findings, the register of thirty-five local rules in force as CSV and JSON, a paste-ready citation, and a same-day check of your copy.
What the coverage gets wrong about Zone 0, claim by claim
No, not every wood fence within five feet must be replaced. Zone 0 claims in the press, checked against the adopted text, with our own errors listed too.
Why this publication exists
Who publishes The Zone Zero Report, how claims are verified against primary regulation text, and how the site makes money.
How this site makes money
How The Zone Zero Report makes money: kits, contractor introductions and documentation, what we do not take, and the editorial rules that money never touches.
What we collect, and what we refuse to
Exactly what The Zone Zero Report stores when you use a form, what we deliberately do not store, who your details are shared with, and how to have them deleted.
Get in touch
Corrections, questions about California's Zone 0 rules, press enquiries, contractor and manufacturer partnerships. We read everything; corrections come first.
One email when something actually changes
One short email when something actually changes: Board of Forestry actions, local ordinance deadlines, insurance filings, map updates. No filler, no fear copy.
The five-foot fix, in a box
DIY Zone Zero gate and fence transition kits: pre-engineered noncombustible five-foot spans for California's ember-resistant zone. Join the waitlist.
The work only counts if it's on file
Photo protocol, ASTM E136 materials sheet, insurance agent brief, and an insurer-ready certificate template for California fence hardening work.
More
Corrections
Every factual correction The Zone Zero Report has made, with dates and links to the note on the page where it was made. Nothing is edited quietly.
How local Zone 0 rules actually spread in California
Local Zone 0 rules are county fire agency model text, not city invention. One Riverside fence rule in six Riverside cities, one San Diego sentence since 2023.
Zone 0 says replace the fence. Civil Code 841 decides who pays for it
Zone 0 says replace the fence; Civil Code 841 decides who pays. The equal-share presumption, the 30-day notice, and why a fire upgrade weakens the split.