← North Dakota burn ban rules›Current Fire Restrictions

North Dakota Current Fire Restrictions (2026)

Conditional: North Dakota has no permanent statewide burn ban, but most of the state is covered.

North Dakota has no permanent statewide burn ban, but most of the state is covered. On the state's own burn-restriction layer (NDDES WebEOC declarations), 62 Fire Emergency Declarations are in force: 44 of North Dakota's 53 counties, 16 federal-agency units and 2 tribal governments (Spirit Lake and Turtle Mountain). BENSON COUNTY HAS COME OFF: its 30-day fire restriction, effective August 18, 2026, has lapsed and the county's layer entry was updated September 19, 2026. The nine counties with NO county declaration are Barnes, Benson, Grand Forks, Griggs, LaMoure, Ransom, Richland, Towner and Walsh. A declaration is what makes a local burn restriction enforceable under N.D.C.C. 37-17.1-10, and what it bars on a given day varies by county: some impose a flat ban, others tie the restriction to the state Fire Danger Rating so it switches on and off automatically. BOWMAN COUNTY replaced its fire-danger-linked restriction with a TOTAL burn restriction beginning September 15, 2026 (county commission resolution, posted to the layer September 22, 2026). DUNN COUNTY issued a new burn restriction declaration dated October 7, 2026 (posted to the layer October 7, 2026 and last edited there October 12, 2026, listed to expire January 1, 2027): it keeps the county's fire-danger-linked restrictions but now allows burn pits and large debris piles when the fire danger level is Low or Moderate; campfires are allowed at Low, Moderate or High fire danger only in a fire ring at a developed campground, and the declaration covers Dodge, Halliday, Dunn Center and Killdeer (Killdeer also has its own ordinance). CITY CARVE-OUTS MATTER — most declarations cover the county's incorporated cities, but several exclude cities that run their own ordinances: Burleigh County excludes Bismarck, Lincoln, Regan, Wilton and Wing; Morton County excludes Mandan, Glen Ullin, Hebron and Flasher; Pierce County excludes Rugby, Balta and Wolford; and Foster County excludes Carrington. Federal orders run independently of any county; the layer lists active declarations for BLM land in 13 counties and for the Cedar River and Little Missouri (McKenzie and Medora districts) National Grasslands. SHEYENNE NATIONAL GRASSLAND RESTRICTIONS HAVE BEEN RESCINDED: the layer now marks the Sheyenne Ranger District order (Forest Order 01-18-00-26-06, which since July 29, 2026 had barred campfires and stove fires on National Forest System land in Ransom and Richland Counties) as rescinded effective September 29, 2026, an entry posted to the layer on October 16, 2026. The Cedar River and Grand River National Grasslands are under Order 01-18-00-26-05 (effective July 24, 2026 at 12:00 p.m., also through December 31); and on the Little Missouri National Grassland (Order 01-18-00-26-02) campfires, smoking outside a safe area and driving on Prairie Two Track roads are prohibited automatically, county by county, whenever fire danger is High or above or a Red Flag Warning is in effect. HOW CURRENT THIS IS: each declaration is self-reported by its own jurisdiction and carries its own edit date, and those range from May 11, 2026 to October 16, 2026 — a ban lifted locally since then may not have reached the state layer yet. Restrictions are set county by county; check the ND burn restriction map and your county before burning.

Official source: nddesgis.nd.gov →

Check the live restriction status: burnrestrictions.nd.gov →

General legal information, not legal advice — verify important decisions with a licensed attorney.