Burn Permits

Know before you burn!  The following are some important highlights for outdoor burning in Missoula County:

General Outdoor Burning (“Open Burning”) occurs from March 1 to August 31 each year. However, the burning season can and will be closed early during unusually dry weather conditions.

  • An outdoor burn permit costs $7.00 annually. During the burn season, you can purchase a burn permit at any of our fire stations or online at app.egovmt.com/burnpermit. Remember, outdoor burn permits are for natural and untreated vegetation only.
  • Once you have purchased your burn permit, remember to activate it on the day you plan to burn. You can do so at the same website (app.egovmt.com/burnpermit) or on your touch-tone phone at 1-888-583-6497. You will need your burn permit number to activate your permit for the day.
  • You must have a paper copy of the permit with you at the fire. In fact, Missoula County recommends that you make a couple of copies of your burn permit so that you can have a clean copy at home.  In addition, ensure that someone is with your fire at all times!
  • Burning hours are from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Please use caution with the size of your burn piles, as you want a pile that can burn down within about six hours. Sometimes, it is better to burn a small pile each day than to try to rush to have a big fire out by 4:00 p.m.
For more information on outdoor burning, please click here for more details.