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Whitehorse City Council Regulations for Pruning and Removing Trees

You always must be sure that you don’t remove or prune any trees on your property in whitehorse without first checking the Whitehorse city council regulation for tree works.

You will need to comply with these council laws if you are located in Blackburn, Blackburn North, Blackburn South, Box Hill, Box Hill South, Box Hill North, Burwood East, Forest Hill, Mitcham, Mont Albert North, Vermont South. You may also need to comply with these laws if you are located in Balwyn North, Burwood, Mont Albert, Nunawading, Surrey Hills and Vermont as parts of these suburbs are Governed by Whitehorse Council.


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COMMON TREES IN WHITEHORSE COUNCIL

English oak (Quercus robur), Pin oak (Quercus palustris) and Lemon-scented gum (Corymbia citriodora) are some of the the most commonly planted trees in Whitehorse, with many home owners having varations of these species residing in their yards; as more and more developments and apartments pop-up in this area the need for stump removals and professional tree pruning have increased in order to respect tighter land boundaries and a growing property base. 

CITY OF WHITEHORSE TREE PRUNING AND REMOVAL LAWS

The City of Whitehorse is Covered by a A Significant Landscape Overlay, this means that you will need a planning permit to remove any trees when the following criteria applies to your property.

Within the Significant Landscape Overlay a planning permit is required to remove, destroy or lop a protected tree. A protected tree is one that:

  • Has a single trunk circumference of 50 centimetres or more, when measured at a height of 1 metre above ground level.

To check if your property resides under whitehorse SLO click here

Violation of council regulations on tree pruning and removing can result in possible penalties such as fines, enforcement at VCAT, or prosecution through the Magistrates’ Court.

SIGNIFICANT/heritage PROTECTED TREES

Whitehorse Council have a list of trees that receive a higher level of protection than the laws that apply to canopy trees (seen above). They are given this protection due to impressive size or age, rarity, ecological value, or cultural and historical significance. a significant tree can be a single tree an avenue of trees or even a hedge and it may reside on public or private property. To find out if you tree if on the Significant Tree register click here

NEIGHBOURING TREES

Occasionally tree pruning or removal is required for trees that aren’t on your property. When a tree overhangs your property line, but is not your tree, you are still required to conform to Whitehorse councils tree laws, once you have a permit from the council or if the tree is below council regulation size, the tree is covered under Victoria property law. 

This Law means that you are within your rights to prune or cut anything that overhangs your boundary line, as long as you do not cause irreversible damage to the tree. You do not need your neighbour’s permission to do this, however, we recommend that you engage them along the way, in true neighbourly spirit. For more detailed information regarding tree pruning and removal on neighbouring trees click here. 

whitehorse PERMIT APPLICATION FORMS

CLICK HERE to download the Whitehorse tree removal checklist for a permit application form, the application goes through the planning department and will need to be accompanied by the following documents

  • A full Arborist report on the tree

  • A site map clearly indicating the tree

  • A copy of your title

  • A written statement detailing why you would like the tree removed.

NEED HELP?

Permit applications and dealing with council can be a confusing and time consuming process. If you have any queries related to paperwork need a hand with the paperwork or would prefer that somebody handled the permit process on your behalf, we would be happy to do so. We have years of experience dealing with Whitehorse City Council and their arborist team, Fill in your details and we will get the process started for you.

Do you need tree pruning, tree removal, or an arborist report for your Whitehorse property? Fill in your details or Call us on 0478 896 636 for a fast and free quote.