Fire hazard zones in Nevada County
Under state law, Nevada County was required to adopt the 2025 Local Responsibility Area hazard zone maps for its unincorporated area by June 10, 2025. Grass Valley, Nevada City and the Town of Truckee each handle their own maps. See the county’s Fire Hazard Severity Zones page.
State law already requires defensible space out to 100 feet in the State Responsibility Area and in local Very High zones. The statewide Zone 0 (0–5 ft) rule is not yet in effect. See where the Zone 0 rules stand.
Nevada County Office of Emergency Services runs a defensible-space line (530-470-2727, per the county page).
Water first: keyline design
Foothill properties are often sloped, so a lot of what we plan is about where water goes. Our free design tool measures your slopes, drainage lines and estimated keypoints from public USGS elevation data and pulls your mapped soils from the USDA soil survey. A site walk then checks those estimates on the ground with a laser level. Estimated keypoints are always confirmed in the field before anyone digs.
Local help and cost-share
Nevada County Resource Conservation District works with landowners on soil and water conservation. Farmers and ranchers may be able to cover conservation planning through USDA-NRCS programs. Ask us about current options.
Ask about your property → Open the design tool
General information only, not legal or permitting advice. Check hazard zones for your exact parcel with CAL FIRE's FHSZ viewer.