§ 16-20. Intent and purpose.

(a)

A.R.S. § 26-311 authorizes the chairman of the county board of supervisors, if authorized by ordinance or resolution, and with subsequent ratification by the full board of supervisors, to declare an emergency in unincorporated areas of the county, including a fire emergency in areas where drought and/or weather conditions have created a greatly increased wildfire threat to human life and property.

(b)

The county board of supervisors is desirous of establishing a mechanism to implement temporary wildfire prevention measures such as open fire, campfire, and fireworks prohibitions in unincorporated areas determined to be in a fire emergency without implementing such measures in areas of the county not in such an emergency.

(c)

The county board of supervisors is desirous of creating a progressive program whereby the public can be alerted to extreme fire hazards:

(1)

Through public outreach messages;

(2)

Through implementation of open fire and permissible consumer fireworks prohibitions in areas determined to be in a fire emergency;

(3)

By requests from authorized officials to the responsible parties to voluntarily extinguish fires or cease use of fireworks within areas where prohibitions are in effect;

(4)

By orders from authorized officials to the responsible parties to cease prohibited activities or be subject to citation; and

(5)

By law enforcement citation of violators who fail to comply with such legitimate orders and are thereby placing lives and property at risk.

(d)

The county board of supervisors is further authorized pursuant to A.R.S. § 11-251(63) to adopt and provide for the enforcement of ordinances prohibiting open fires and campfires on designated lands in the unincorporated areas of the county when a determination of emergency is issued by the county emergency management officer and the board deems it necessary to protect public health and safety on those lands.

(e)

The county board of supervisors is further authorized pursuant to A.R.S. § 36-1606 to regulate the use of permissible consumer fireworks within the unincorporated areas of the county during times when there is a reasonable risk of wildfires in the immediate county.

( Ord. No. 2013-04 , 5-6-2013)