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AQD | Smoke Management

Air Quality Division

Smoke Management Program

Revised On: Nov. 12, 2023 - 12:29 p.m.

Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) Smoke Management Program is certified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The program is specific to forest and range management burns done by federal and state land managers, along with municipal fire departments. Prescribed burning is necessary to help prevent catastrophic wildfires because of Arizona’s arid climate. This also helps maintain the health of the forests, prairies and brushlands by removing the dry debris that collect on the ground which can ignite into a severe fire if not burned off properly.

Elements of ADEQ’s Smoke Management Program include:

  • Permitting daily prescribed burn activity
  • Gathering prescribed burn data
  • Evaluating smoke dispersion potential of prescribed fires and wildfires
  • Notifying the public of approved prescribed burns
  • Assisting in air quality monitoring needs related to smoke from prescribed burns and wildfires
  • Tracking Emission Reduction Techniques (ERTs)
  • Encouraging regional coordination between burners for adherence to EPA’s Regional Haze Rule

Article 15: Forest and Range Management Burns State Implementation Plan (SIP) Revision

ADEQ recently completed a rulemaking to revise the Article 15 forest and range management burn rules governing prescribed burning smoke management in order to streamline and modernize the rules and will aid in reducing the major threat of wildfires in Arizona.

The rule revisions will now be submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for federal approval and incorporation as a revision to the Arizona SIP, following the required public comment period and public hearing.

Proposed SIP — Article 15: Forest and Range Management Burns rule revisions | View/Download >


ADEQ welcomes comments for:

  • The proposed SIP revision from Nov. 2, 2023, to Dec. 7, 2023 | Learn More >

ADEQ will also hold a public hearing to review the proposed SIP revision, answer questions relevant to the SIP revision, and provide an opportunity for written and oral comment at a public hearing on Dec. 7, 2023, at 10:30 a.m. | Learn More & Register >

Active Prescribed Burns

See all active Prescribed Burns |  View Listing >