Burning brush in unincorporated Rockwall County has real rules

On a few rural acres between McLendon-Chisholm and Royse City, clearing a fence line of dead brush is normal, but Rockwall County draws a tight line around how you do it. You can only burn dry plant growth that came off that same site. No household garbage, no lumber, no tires, no asphalt or anything petroleum-based; those will get you in trouble fast.

The county wants a 300-foot buffer between your fire and the nearest house, shop, or recreation area unless it's all your own land, plus a cleared 50-foot firebreak around the pile. An adult has to stay with it the whole time, and you keep it to daylight, sunrise to sunset. Wind matters too: under 5 mph and the smoke just sits, over 21 mph and embers travel, so both are off-limits, along with ozone action days and any day the county has a burn ban posted.

Before you strike a match in the unincorporated county, call the Rockwall County Sheriff's Office non-emergency line at 972-204-7001 so a smoke column doesn't pull a fire truck out for nothing. Inside any city, whether Rockwall, Fate, Heath, or Royse City, the county rules don't apply and you need a burn permit from that city instead.