San Diego just fast-tracked new fire-safety rules for homes. Here’s what homeowners should know.

New fire prevention rules in San Diego will force thousands of city homeowners to begin complying with controversial “Zone Zero” regulations that prohibit flammable items like landscaping within 5 feet of a home.

The new rules and policies — which the City Council fast-tracked through approval last week with no public debate — also seek to boost firefighting by requiring a water supply at construction sites and by strengthening rules against dead-end streets in new developments.

But the Zone Zero rules — once scheduled to take effect statewide in 2023, before a series of delays prompted by public outcry — are expected to be the most impactful of the city’s fire policy changes.

They apply only in very high fire-hazard severity zones, but the vast majority of San Diego — about two-thirds — is in such a zone.

While Zone Zero rules are expected to dramatically boost wildfire prevention, some critics — and even some supporters — say they will be expensive for homeowners.

They’re also expected to force homeowners across San Diego and other parts of California to battle over the contractors, landscapers and other vendors needed to make changes required by the new regulations.

Zone Zero rules go beyond rules for Zone 1, which refers to the area within a 5 to 35 foot radius of a home, and those for Zone 2, the area between 35 and 100 feet, to address the 5 feet of space directly next to a home.

The rules essentially say that nothing ...