Sutherland Shire tree removal rules

The full guide

The rule in one sentence

In the Sutherland Shire, a tree is protected if its trunk is 100 mm or more across, measured 500 mm above the ground. 500 mm is about knee height. A quick test: wrap an A4 sheet lengthways around the trunk at that height. If the ends don’t meet, treat the tree as protected. All bushland vegetation of any size, and anything within 4 m of a creek, is protected too. Height doesn’t come into it, which is why fairly small trees in the Shire often need a permit. Council’s words: “a single or multi trunked tree with a diameter of 100mm or more measured at 500mm above ground level” (DCP 2015 Chapter 39, cl. 4.2).

What you can do without a permit

• Remove a tree on the exempt species list, such as cocos palm, camphor laurel, liquidambar, privet, Canary Island date palm, umbrella tree, coral tree and most fruit trees. The full list is below. This does not apply if the tree is, or is part of, a heritage item.
• Minor pruning: no more than 10% of the canopy in any 12 months, cut to the pruning standard AS 4373.
• Branches directly over the roof of a house or commercial building, cut back to the nearest branch junction to clear the roofline, with the tree owner’s agreement.
• Storm-damaged limbs, but only the broken part.
• Clearing under the RFS 10/50 Code, if the RFS online tool confirms your address is in an entitlement area on the day you clear.
• A tree that is an immediate, obvious danger, but only with the evidence described below.

Trees close to the house or pool

Council “will permit removal of a tree located within three metres of a dwelling or swimming pool”, but you still have to apply and wait for approval. The 3 m is measured 500 mm above the ground, from the outer wall or slab edge to the nearest point of the trunk. It doesn’t cover decks, garages, sheds, fences or other structures.

If the tree is dangerous right now

The law lets you remove a tree without a permit if council is satisfied it’s a risk to life or property. In the Shire, you have to prove it afterwards. Council’s process:

1. Get an insured arborist (council recommends at least AQF level 4) to inspect it and photograph it, both close up and in context.
2. If it is an imminent risk, the work can go ahead.
3. You and the arborist fill in council’s SEPP Exempt Imminent Risk form: the date, the reason and why there was no alternative.
4. Keep the form and every photo for at least two years. Council may ask for them if someone complains.

Without that evidence, council treats the removal as tree vandalism. If a tree is only possibly dangerous, apply for a permit instead: if council’s inspection finds it’s a risk, it will issue the permit and set a time frame.

If a tree has already fallen on your house, call the SES on 132 500 and your insurer. If it came from council land, report it to council, which removes it up to your boundary. Stay at least 8 m from any fallen power line and call Ausgrid on 13 13 88.

Dead trees

The DCP says dead trees are “generally exempt from protection except where they contain hollows or nesting sites for native fauna”. Hollows have to be kept, though council will allow safety pruning. Photograph a dead tree before it comes down, and have a look for hollows first. A possum or owl in a hollow changes everything.

How council decides

Council ranks its reasons in order: public safety first, then bushfire risk, hardship, scenic quality, Greenweb, closeness to buildings, amenity and tree health. A few things surprise people:

• Leaf, flower, fruit and branch drop are not reasons to remove a tree. Council calls them “normal biological processes”.
• Council won’t approve removal just for a view. Trees visible from the water, on ridgelines or that shape the street’s character are the hardest to remove. Council may agree to canopy thinning instead.
• Structural damage to the house can justify removal. Damage to driveways, fences, paths and outbuildings generally doesn’t.
• Shade: a tree that badly overshadows a living-room window or solar panels may be pruned or removed if you replant. The benchmark is at least two hours of midwinter sun between 9 am and 3 pm.

Applying, step by step

1. Check the rules above, and look up your property on Shire Maps: the heritage, Greenweb and bush fire prone land layers.
2. Download the Tree Permit Application and the Owner’s Consent form.
3. Fill in each tree: species if you know it, prune or remove, where it is and why. Up to three trees fit on the form; use the multiple-tree sheet for more.
4. Draw a sketch of the trees, numbered, in relation to the house, boundaries, driveway and street. Photos aren’t required, but an arborist report can be attached.
5. Get every registered owner to sign the consent form. In a strata scheme you also need the owners corporation’s consent.
6. Lodge in person at 4–20 Eton Street, Sutherland, or online through council’s portal (“Lodge and attach your application form”, not “Report It”).
7. Pay the council fee: $213Council fee in 2026/27, or $90Council fee for pensioners, who lodge a paper form with a copy of their card.
8. Council’s arborist inspects, usually without telling you first.
9. Wait for the written determination, normally within 28 business days. Don’t touch the tree before then. Permits last two years.
10. Plant the replacements: usually two local native trees on your land for each one removed, or pay council to plant four on public land ($595 to $3,728Council fee a tree depending on pot size).

If council says no

• Get an AQF Level 5 consulting arborist’s report with a TRAQ risk assessment. Council’s Urban Tree and Bushland Policy says it will accept the outcome and reissue the permit where removal is recommended. The report must come from an independent consultant with no link to a tree contracting company.
• Ask for a council review in writing within six months (removals only). A Tree Review Panel reviews the whole site. The council fee is $213Council fee.
• Appeal to the Land and Environment Court within three months of the decision, under the state Biodiversity and Conservation SEPP.

Greenweb

Greenweb is the Shire’s bushland corridor map, made up of Core, Support and Restoration areas running along the national parks, the Georges River, Port Hacking, Botany Bay and Bate Bay. In a Greenweb area, all species indigenous to the Shire have to be kept, and bushland in Core or Support areas generally can’t be cleared without RFS support or a development consent. Check your property on Shire Maps (Environment → Greenweb). Council’s Greenweb Officer (0414 193 840) offers free garden consultations and free native tube stock.

Street and park trees

Trees on nature strips, streets, parks and reserves belong to council. Never prune or remove one yourself, or pay a contractor to. Council treats it as vandalism, and illegally removed trees attract a four-for-one replacement offset. Report problems through council’s request portal or on 02 9710 0333. Council doesn’t accept leaf drop, views, overhanging branches or “too big” as reasons to prune a public tree.

Choosing a contractor

Council’s own advice is to avoid door-knockers offering cheap cash tree work (“often intimidating, uninsured and use poor work practices”). Use an arborist with at least AQF level 3, ask to see their insurance, and get a written quote showing their ABN.