Friday, December 23, 2016

New Ordinance in Sacramento To Boost Urban Tree Protections

Sacramento, CA (August 4, 2016) – In the City of Trees, a new ordinance will put more bite in tree protection. The Sacramento City Council gave unanimous approval to an ordinance that will better protect Sacramento’s existing trees and foster expansion of the urban forest. The ordinance provides new rules for safeguarding, maintaining and removing trees on both private and public land.

Backers of the new ordinance say it adds protections for about 25,000 trees now excluded from city purview and creates a long-term plan for preserving the leafy canopy of 100,000 trees viewed as a defining characteristic of the city.

The ordinance requires a 15-day notice before city trees and some privately owned heritage trees could be cut down, and mandates higher fines for tree scofflaws.

“Trees are utterly essential to our life here in Sacramento,” said Councilman Jeff Harris, who has led efforts to craft the proposal. “They are what make it livable here.”


Harris said a new ordinance is necessary to provide clarity and accountability in managing the urban forest and replaces a trio of existing laws that are out of date and don’t adequately address current challenges including development, disease and replacement.

The proposed ordinance would encompass trees in city parks, which are not covered by current ordinances, as well as streetside trees and those on city-owned land. It also updates rules for removal of trees.

The ordinance creates funding and regulations for replanting young trees when older ones are removed. The city now has no requirements for private property owners to replace trees, and the process for developers can be complex.

Read Full Article Here: New Ordinance in Sacramento To Boost Urban Tree Protections

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