ICS-TT Subdivisions and Edge Development Committee/Tree Preservation Ordinance
From Eugene Neighbors
An in-progress working paper of the ICS-TT Subdivisions and Edge Development Committee
[edit] Overview
This draft document is intended to provide a specific focus on improved tree removal regulation, taking a comprehensive approach to significantly reducing serious abuses and readily avoidable impacts which currently occur especially in small and medium-sized developments - and which specifically reduce the compatibility of those developments.
This proposal is an integral element of the ICS-TT Subdivisions and Edge Development Committee's multi-part effort to address the "death by a thousand cuts" accumulative impacts of infill on natural resources, ecosystem services, scenic resources, the urban forest, etc. without getting lost in complexity.
[edit] Why Conserve Trees
There are many reasons for strong conservation measures for trees within the urban growth boundary. These start with the many general benefits trees provide, including air and water quality, soil stabilization, wildlife habitat, temperature moderation and energy conservation, and carbon sequestration. Trees are an essential component of part of the Willamette Valley regional identity, providing well-documented aesthetic benefits, and increasing individual property values as well as neighborhood desirability.
Trees provide visual buffering which can help enhance infill compatibility.
In a developed and urbanizing area, where human impacts are concentrated and intensified, the relative value of many tree benefits is significantly increased. Yet without firm protections, trees which can take multiple human generations to replace are readily lost due to short-term interests.
In the urban realm, unlike trees planted for harvest in a rural tree farm, trees are fundamentally a community resource, part of our collective natural capital. When a mature healthy tree is cut down, rarely is the person who planted the tree the one desiring removal. Similarly, the long time it takes to recreate a mature tree is several times longer than the average span of ownership for urban real estate - longer, even, than the design lifetime of typical buildings in Eugene.
[edit] How to Conserve Trees
Key components of the draft proposed tree preservation strategy include:
- regulation of trees 6 inches DBH and greater (instead of 8 inches in the current code)
- permits required for all tree removals (instead of only for removals of six or more trees per lot)
- development-related tree removals permitted only with approved building permits (instead of at PUD or subdivision)
- development-related removal only to clear necessary infrastructure and building areas
- tree wells and tree retaining walls required in most cases of cuts and fills, instead of cuts and fills triggering large-scale tree removals in sloped areas
- tree buffers retained around Goal Five areas and other identified natural resource areas
- in addition to all other provisions, no more than 30% of the canopy on a lot can be removed
- for parking lots, a tree canopy required of 50% of paved area within 10 years of construction
- non-development removals of mature trees allowed only with careful exceptions
- outlaw tree removal for the purposes of timber sale within the urban growth boundary (donation of cut timber)
- tree mitigation banking to offset approved tree removals
- low permit fees for owner-occupied single family lot tree removal permits (small number of trees)
- program cost-recovery permit fee basis for non-owner-occupied lot and multi-unit lot trees
- civil penalties for removal without permit, several times higher than either total permit costs or timber sale value
- administrative process includes prior notice to neighborhoods of non-emergency tree removals, appeals of permits and denials, etc.
- ongoing monitoring, reporting, and assessment of tree conservation program effectiveness
The tree conservation program should be flexible enough to have community support but rigorous and detailed enough to accomplish the goals of urban forestry preservation.
[edit] Preliminary Draft Proposal for a new Eugene Tree Conservation Ordinance
[edit] I. Introduction
[edit] a. Conservation and Biodiversity Considerations
(1) We recognize some guidelines to serve as underlying principles to ensure conservation considerations are included in land use decisions, including those which arise in the course of regulating tree conservation.
1. Maintain large areas of contiguous habitat and avoid fragmenting these areas. 2. Maintain meaningful connections between habitat areas. 3. Protect dominant natural habitat types and common native species of both plants and animals. 4. Protect rare landscape elements, sensitive areas, and associated species. 5. Allow natural patterns of disturbance to continue in order to maintain diversity and resilience of habitat types. 6. Minimize the introduction and spread of non-native species and favor native plants and animals. 7. Minimize human introduction of nutrients, chemicals, and pollutants. 8. Avoid land uses that deplete natural resources over a broad area. 9. Protect the areas of intact natural ecosystems at both large and small scales, as disturbing these tends to convert them from carbon sinks to carbon sources. 10. Compensate for adverse affects of development on natural processes.
(2) These are also key elements for designing a forest conservation ordinance that supports biodiversity.
1. The ordinance should define requirements for minimizing the amount of forest cover removed in connection with development.
The ordinance should establish priorities for retention of undisturbed forest in particular areas that have value for biodiversity, including riparian areas, wetlands areas, and areas connecting other forested areas.
2. The ordinance should require submission of a forest delineation in connection with the submission of any subdivision or land development plan.
3. The ordinance should contain provisions that reach back for a period of years to prevent forest removal under the guise of commercial logging that is actually part of site preparation for development.
This can be done through notice provisions or through the application of delineation and mitigation requirements to development applications that are filed within a certain number of years following a substantial removal of forest cover.
4. Forest cover and reforestation objectives should be spelled out explicitly by formula so that it is clear what should be retained or reforested.
5. The ordinance should provide for compensatory mitigation on-site where possible and, where forest retention or reforestation cannot be fully accomplished on-sight, in preferred areas such as off-site riparian areas.
[edit] b. Legal Considerations
(1) Legislative authority.
(2) Designation and review standards.
(3) The Taking Issue.
(4) The rational nexus test.
[edit] c. Beyond the Law
(1) A successful urban forestry program will incorporate a planning component that will reflect the legal framework and give direction to actions to be taken within the urban forestry program for the time reflected in the plan.
(2) An effective plan must consider elements including the actions directed at the trees themselves, a management framework for the tools brought to bear on the trees, and a community framework to engage citizens in the urban forestry program.
(3) Community involvement is especially important because such a large portion of urban trees are on private property.
[edit] II. Goals and Purposes
[edit] a. Tree Preservation
(1) Preserve the maximum of trees that are determined to be appropriate for preservation local environment and that have a reasonable chance of long-term survival.
(2) To protect trees, wetlands, and natural resources by regulating the trimming or removing of trees, site clearing, landscaping, and tree planting, in the city.
[edit] b. Ecosystem Services
(1) Ecosystem services are a complex interplay of natural cycles powered by solar energy and operating across a wide range of space and time scales that provide services that are generally not traded in economic markets and would be extremely difficult to duplicate artificially. They are the processes by which the environment produces resources such as clean water, timber, habitat for fisheries and pollination of native and agricultural plants.
They provide services including moderation of weather extremes and impacts; seed dispersal; drought and flood mitigation; protecting people from harmful effects of the sun; cycle and move nutrients; protect stream and river channels and coastal shores from erosion; detoxify and compose wastes; control agricultural pests; maintain biodiversity; generate and preserve soils and renew their fertility; contribute to climate stability; purify the air and water; regulate disease carrying organisms; and pollinate crops and natural vegetation.
Historically, the nature and value of these systems have not been appreciated until they were lost, for example the understanding of the role forests play in regulating the water cycle is not recognized until trees are removed by deforestation.
Ecosystem services are threatened by land use changes, disruption of biogeochemical cycles, invasive species, pollution, and climate change.
i. Air Quality
Trees remove carbon dioxide and other pollutant gases from the air, and release oxygen, which further dilutes pollution. Their role in reducing temperatures reduces the formation of smog. They remove airborne particles by trapping them and by increasing humidity, which washes particles out of the air. The role of trees in improving air quality in urban areas is increasingly being recognized. Tree cover in urban areas can contribute to a reduction in respiratory diseases, less employee illness, fewer workdays lost, lower burden on health insurance system. Purposes that reflect the intention to improve air quality include aiding in the removal of carbon dioxide and generation of oxygen in the atmosphere.
ii. Water Quality, Water Quantity, and Erosion Control
Trees play a critical role in slowing stormwater runoff by slowing the surface movement of water and stabilizing the soil with their roots. Trees absorb the first 30% of most precipitation through their leaf systems and up to another 30% of precipitation is absorbed into the ground and captured by the roots, which brings it back into the air through transpiration. This prevents carrying pollutants into surface water bodies, prevents the washing away of soil, and allows water to percolate into the soil, increasing its productivity. Thus, trees and vegetation are effective and efficient methods for meeting the U.S. EPA's standards for water quality from nonpoint sources such as streets, parking lots, and storm sewers.
iii. Temperature Moderation and Energy Conservation
Trees can reduce the temperature of urban areas by seven or more degrees. They similarly shelter structures from the wind and contribute to moderating temperatures in the winter. Even planting three trees near a house can have significant impacts on the costs of energy for temperature control. Thus, urban trees result in a reduction in energy bills, and contribute to affordable housing. This moderation effect of urban trees is increasingly being recognized as important in light of predicted climate change.45 Local Governments for Sustainability, along with the City of Seattle, and the U.S. Conference of Mayors recognize urban tree planting and preservation as a key action and tool for climate protection. This is just one of the ways that sustainable urban forestry practices can contribute to effective adaptation to climate change.
iv. Carbon Sequestration
Extensive recent research shows that mature trees continue to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as long as they live. For this reason, our existing trees, especially large trees, make a significant ongoing contribution, which should be carefully preserved.
[edit] c. Economic Development and Livability
Trees can reduce energy costs and the costs of managing stormwater. They contribute to a positive image of a community and are viewed as a factor in the quality of life of a city. Harmony with nature and livable built environments are two of the core values of sustainable development reflected in successfully local development regimes.
Purposes of tree conservation ordinances intended for economic development or livability of cities can be specific about how the ordinances will accomplish these goals, or can be more broad: Generally protect and enhance the quality of life and the general welfare of the city.
The value of an urban street tree has been calculated to be a return of $90,000 in direct benefits in the lifetime of the tree.
i. Visual and Aesthetic Values
Trees contribute to the beauty and attractiveness of communities. They make communities more livable by reducing the distortions of height and space created by tall buildings; they form a protective and psychological barrier between pedestrians and car traffic; they contribute to the unique identity of the community.50 Further, they are also often protected because of their contributions to the character of a city, particularly to areas such as historic zones, and scenic areas such as riversides and ridgelines. Trees should be preserved to conserve and enhance the city's physical and aesthetic environment.
ii. Property Values
Trees are traditionally appraised at a significant value in an urban setting and studies have shown that people are willing to pay more for lots with trees.
Protecting trees also reduces developers' costs for stormwater detention and landscaping.
Shade encourages more commerce, which supports local business and increases the tax revenues for the community. Businesses on treed streets have been found to have 20% higher income streams than those without trees.
iii. Livability Factors
Trees can muffle sound, making an area behind a tree buffer more comfortable than one exposed directly to street sounds.
Trees should be preserved to provide a visual buffer and screen against traffic and some buffer against noise pollution.
Trees also improve air quality as described above and also have been found to have positive mental health effects. Further, shade from trees protects people's skin for harmful rays of the sun.
Trees should be preserved to provide protection against impacts of excessive sun and weather.
[edit] d. Ecosystem Preservation
Urban trees can provide habitat for nesting resident and migratory birds, a variety of mammals, insects, and other wildlife.
Guidelines to evaluate the potential impact of tree preservation decisions on natural systems include:
(1) examine the impacts of local decisions in a regional context;
(2) plan for long-term change and unexpected events;
(3) preserve rare landscape elements and associated species;
(4) avoid land uses that deplete natural resources over a broad area;
(5) retain large contiguous or connected areas that contain critical habitats; (6) minimize the introduction and spread of non-native species;
(7) avoid or compensate for effects of development on ecological processes; and
(8) implement land use and land management practices that are compatible with the natural potential of the area.
[edit] III. Definitions
Arborist: A tree professional certified by the International Society of Arboriculture or the National Arborist Association.
Afforestation: To convert open land into a forest
Biodiversity (biological diversity): The variety, distribution and abundance of living organisms in an ecosystem. Maintaining biodiversity is believed to promote stability, sustainability and resilience of ecosystems.
Buffer: Linear bands of permanent vegetation, preferably consisting of native and locally adapted species, located between aquatic resources and adjacent areas subject to human alternation.
Caliper: Standard measure of tree size for trees to be newly planted. The measurement is taken 6 inches above the ground for trees 4 inches in diameter or less and 12 inches above the ground for trees over 4 inches in diameter.
Canopy: The top layer or crown of mature trees. (Monmouth, NJ Model Tree Protection Ordinance)
Clear-cutting: The cutting of more than seventy-five percent (75%) of the trees four (4) inches DBH or greater
Cutting: The felling or removal of a tree, or any procedure in which the natural result will lead to the death or substantial destruction of a tree.
Such acts include but are not limited to the severe cutting back of limbs to stubs larger than three inches in diameter; and damage inflicted upon the root system of the tree.
Cutting does not include normal pruning within the bounds of accepted arboricultural practice.
Damage (or abuse): any action or inaction which does not follow good arboricultural practices as established by the National Arborist Association.
Abuse also includes damage inflicted upon roots by machinery, changing the natural grade above the root system or around the trunk, destruction of the natural shape or any action which causes infection, infestation, or decay.
DBH: Diameter at breast height; commonly measured at 4 feet above the ground. A common measurement for tree protection standards and other tree regulations.
- Circumference: (a variation on the DBH concept) the distance around the periphery of a tree at four and one-half feet above existing grade.
Developed single-family lot: a legally platted lot of less than 16,000 square feet upon which a single-family habitable dwelling exists.
Development: The performance of any building or mining operation, the making of any material change in the use or appearance of any structure or land, the division of land into two or more parcels, and the creation or termination of rights of access or riparian rights... [including] demolition of a structure or removal of trees. (American Law Institute)70
Development activity: Any construction, development, earth movement, clearing or site disturbance activity, which requires a permit, and/or an approval, and/or authorization from the city.
Diseased tree: Any tree with a combination of structural defect and/or a health condition, which makes it subject to a high probability of failure.
Dripline: An imaginary perpendicular line that extends downward from the outermost branches of a tree to the ground.
Ecosystem functions: The biophysical processes that take place within an ecosystem, apart from any human context.
Ecosystem services: The ecosystem goods and services that provide benefit, directly or indirectly, to humans.
Grand tree: A tree that meets a given standard for circumference, height, and crown measurements such that the total number of points given for those characteristics equal or exceed a minimum number of points for a particular species.
Heritage Tree: Any tree that because of its age, size, unique type, or historical association is of special importance to the city.
Private tree: Any tree not located on property owned or controlled by the city.
Remnant patch: Habitat patches that escape disturbance and are left remaining from an earlier more extensive span of habitat.
Removal: The actual removal or causing the effective removal through damaging, poisoning, or other direct or indirect actions resulting of the death of a tree.
Invasive, nonnative vegetation: Any plant not indigenous to Oregon, which exhibits, or has the potential to exhibit, noncontrolled growth and invasion or alteration of the natural qualities and functions of any native habitat.
Native species:
- Native plant community: those plant communities naturally occurring in
the Willamette Valley, Oregon.
- Native plant material:
Any plant material indigenous to Willamette Valley, Oregon and which is naturally grown or commercially propagated or cultivated for the nursery or landscaping industry.
- Native tree: any tree indigenous to Willamette Valley, Oregon or Eugene and which is naturally grown or commercially propagated or cultivated for the nursery or landscaping industry.
Protective Root Zone: The entire surface and subsurface soil area encompassed by prescribed radius for protected and grand trees (per the technical manual).
Recommended Tree: A tree of 2 inches or greater in diameter as measured 6 inches above grade, which is included in the recommended tree list for as Schedule E.
Significant tree: Any tree that is at least six inches in D.B.H., and not include on the [list of exceptions].
A tree growing with multiple stems shall be considered significant if at least one of the stems, measured at a point six inches from the point where the stems digress from the main trunk, is at least four inches in diameter.
- Nonsignificant tree:
Any tree under six inches or those included on the following list, regardless of size: 1. Acer platanoidesa 2. Aesculus hippocastanum 3. Ailanthus altissima 4. Crataegus monogyna 5. Prunus cerasifera 6. Sorbus aucuparia 7. Pyrus communis 8. Pyrus calleryana 9. Robinia pseudoacacia
Specimen tree: Individual trees which are healthy which have a diameter at breast height of 24 inches or greater, or which otherwise are noteworthy because of species, age, size, or any other exceptional quality, such as, uniqueness, rarity, or status as a landmark or species specimen.
Suitable habitat: Habitat that meets the survival and reproductive needs of a species, allowing for a stable or growing population over time. Tree: o any self-supporting wooding plant together with its root system, growing upon the earth with one trunk of at least three inches in diameter at a height of four and one-half feet above the ground, or a multi-stemmed trunk system with a definitely formed crown. This excludes any ornamental shrubs.
- any self-supporting single-and multi-stem woody plant of a species which grows to at least a height of fifteen (15) feet in the environs of the city.
Tree canopy: The area of the property that contains coverage by trees and consists of the total crown spreads or drip-lines of all trees existing on-site.
Woodland:
- A mature woodland is an area or stand of trees whose total combined canopy covers an area of one acre or more and at least 50 percent of which is composed of canopies of trees having a DBH of at least 10, or any grove consisting of eight or more individual trees have a DBH of at least 12 whose combined canopies cover at least 50 percent of the area encompassed by the grove.
- A young woodland is one that does not meet those specifications.
[edit] IV. Applicability
This tree conservation ordinance is intended to apply generally, to both public and private trees.
[edit] a. Land Uses
Application of a tree conservation ordinance can be specified according to how land is being used.
Some are particular to current land use or lot size, while others depend on a new proposal for the property.
i. New Development
New development projects require city approval before development may commence or certificate of occupancy issued.
ii. Commercial or Residential Property
iii. Historic Property
[edit] b. Trees Regulated
i. Regulation by Size
Trees covered by these regulations are 6" DBH or larger, except for smaller size trees of particularly important or slow-growing species as specified in adopted City administrative rules.
1. Percentage of Local Standard
Additional regulations may apply to "large trees", defined in terms of a percentage of a local standard.
2. Analysis of Size Approach
ii. Regulation by Species
1. List of Species
Allowance for appropriate removal of formally listed invasive non-native species.
2. Protecting Native Species
Rather than specifically apply protection to native species, restricted removal allowances will be defined for specific non-native invasive species.
[edit] c. Exemptions to Applicability
i. Administrative Convenience
ii. Amount of Trees Removed
(1) Allow a specific area of trees to be cleared, based on an approved building permit and contingent on filing of a bonded contract for construction to commence within one year, providing up to a 15 foot cleared setback from the exterior building walls.
(2) Tree removals may not be permitted based only on an approved development site plan, partition, subdivision, or PUD, tentative or final.
iii. Certain Trees Exempt
(1) Removal of hazardous trees should be permitted, but limited by professional certification, number of trees, and percentage.
iv. Incompatible Land Uses
This tree preservation applies to all zoning and land use types, so as to avoid creating loopholes.
Applicability to utility easements needs some attention.
Applicability to legitimate working orchards needs some attention.
v. Analysis of Exemptions
[edit] d. What Activities are Regulated
Removal, pruning, or harming any tree, clearing of vegetation from a site, or beginning any excavation, removing soil, or placing fill on a site until the city manager has issued a permit.
Another concern related to timing arises from the fact that new owners often buy a property and clear trees, sometimes as part of a desire to signify the property as their own or because they are not used to tree canopy.
To prevent this resulting in rash applications for tree removals, drafters can limit tree removal permits for new owners for an interim period to allow new owner to get used to trees and appreciate how they function in landscape.
i. Timing
It is crucial that tree protection standards apply in a time scale that comprehends the actions that can be taken to impact urban trees. This means making sure that standards apply before any qualifying development actions are taken. It is also advisable to make the requirements retroactive to prevent efforts to circumvent the purposes of the ordinance.
[edit] e. Who Must Comply
i. Public Utilities
State laws differ about whether localities have the authority to regulate public utilities. Localities may chose to regulate either development activities carried out by utilities, or practices such as pruning methodology. Localities have adopted standards that utilities must comply with in their pruning activities, though some only apply on public rights-of-way.
These communities have expressed the decision against allowing utilities to adopt some common but unnecessary and unappealing practices such as topping. Communities seeking to have sustainable urban forests must also consider utility construction practices because activities related to underground sewer, water, and electrical lines can gravely interfere with the root systems of trees.
As with regulating activities of private companies, ordinance drafters must ensure that the locality can influence the construction activity early in the process to avoid conflict and make sure that the regulatory power is effective.
A simple way of doing this is to explicitly include utilities in general development permit requirements.
Structuring the law to require consultation and negotiation can prove especially fruitful when it comes to influencing the activities of public utilities or other government agencies. Tree advocates have managed in some cases to draft laws that allow the priority of trees to trump other considerations, with the discretion of the appropriate official.
Require city officials to consider whether a standard or rule could be modified without posing any serious and imminent adverse effect when application of the standard threatens a protected tree. For instance, allow for steeper grades, reduction in building setbacks, islands in cul-de-sacs, a reduction in street widths, and grassy swales instead of curbs in some subdivisions to preserve existing trees.
[edit] f. Miscellaneous
The tree permitting ordinance does not impose liability on the city or relieve private property owners from the duty to keep trees and shrubs in safe condition.
[edit] V. Permit Requirements
A successful permit program must specify responsibility and corresponding authority, permit application and approval criteria, mitigation requirements, appeals process, and enforcement mechanisms. As part of the permitting process, communities can require delineations of forests on development sites, set goals or requirements for forest retention or reforestation, establish requirements for connectivity of open space and forest areas on development sites, and require suitable mitigation consistent with the purposes of the development. In order to ensure that information used to make decisions is current, permits must have expiration dates.
[edit] a. Authority
The success of a tree protection regime, especially a more complex one, will hinge on the skill and knowledge of the administrator of the program. It is crucial for the administrator to understand land use controls, the development procedure, and especially arboricultural practices. Further, the authority must have sufficient resources to adequately administer the program. If feasible, investing a single person in the planning department with responsibility for overseeing all tree-conservation-related activities for the locality is the most effective approach.
i. Citizen Review Bodies
Environmental Commission. The Commission is an advisory Board appointed by the Mayor that may have 5 members, one of whom is a liaison from the Commission to the Planning Commission. All members are volunteers who have expressed an interest in various environmental issues. The Commission is an advisory Commission to the Planning Commission. The Commission reviews applications that are presented to the Planning and Zoning Boards for environmental impacts and provides comments and recommendations to those Boards. Environmental impacts include issues concerning planned land use, waste management, air and water quality, and light and noise pollution.
[edit] b. Requirements for Regulated Activity During Development Projects
Information required for permitting includes information about the applicant, the nature of the project, and a site tree survey or inventory.
Many localities require forest stand delineations and a forest conservation plan, which meets some standard for forest retention and mitigation.
i. Tree Survey
In order to understand the baseline conditions at the proposed site site, to determine if it is regulated, how to regulate, and to ensure subsequent compliance, the locality must understand the existing vegetative patterns and other conditions. The city shall require an arborist's report, at the applicant's expense.
Some communities fund community-wide surveys as a first step in enacting an ordinance. Others maintain records only of especially big or otherwise special trees.
1. Plan Requirements
Applications to remove two or more trees are required to submit a natural inventory map that shows natural tree cover, delineating groups of trees of similar type or species along the dripline of the individual trees. The map must show the range of height and caliper of all the trees and the appearance of the trees as an indicator of health. The ordinance further requires the notation of all specimen, historic, and protected trees on the map. It should show wetlands, all waterways, and slopes of specific steepness and contours.
2. Exemptions to Survey or Plan Requirements
ii. Retention Requirements
1. Stand Retention
Protecting trees in groups is the most effective way to comprehensively protect trees and the services they provide. Protect at least 70 percent of mature woodlands and at least 40 percent of young woodlands on a site.
a. Buffers
Special treatment for buffers around Goal 5 areas? Along wetlands or waterways?
b. Specific Areas
Require retention of intact natural ecosystems, sensitive areas, areas of contiguous forest that provide connectivity with other tracts, larger trees, and trees that are rare, threatened or endangered, or associated with historic structures.
Forested areas shall be preserved if associated with significant native forest communities; wetlands, waterbodies, and their buffers; critical wildlife habitat; or slopes over 20%.
2. Tree Retention
Preserving individual, particular trees does not provide for the shade benefits that come from preserving many smaller trees that may not qualify for heritage status and may not be part of specific forest patches. For example, much of the energy conservation benefits of trees come from stands close to buildings providing shade in late morning and early afternoon, so preserving stands has extra benefits. Protecting only individual trees also does not take into account their relative value based on their location on the property, their proximity to other trees, to buildings (for shade), and to adjacent woodlands or riverine habitats.
Require preservation of all desirable trees when physically possible, except on R-1 residential lots with continuous owner occupancy for 12 months preceeding permit issuance.
In addition to other requirements, only allow removal of trees that must be removed because they are on the site of the proposed improvements.
3. Canopy Retention
In addition to other provisions, provide that no more than 30% of the canopy on a lot can be removed.
4. Retention Recommendations
iii. Afforestation
While requirements to retain certain trees are commonplace, some localities actually require developers to increase the overall vegetative cover, similar to landscape requirements.
[edit] c. Requirements for Regulatory Activities Not Associated with Development Projects
i. Parking Lots
Require that within 10 years of the installation of the parking lot, there is tree canopy of 50% of paved area.
[edit] d. Surety
Require confirmation that applicable tree protection and mitigation are in place prior to final project approval (e.g. certificate of occupancy). In the alternative, localities may choose to require a performance bond since damage to roots may not be apparent immediately after development.
[edit] e. Preconstruction Conference
Require that the developers meet with representative from the local tree authority.
[edit] f. Appeals
Provide for appeal of tree permitting decisions through the administrative appeals process already provided for in the code.
[edit] g. Expiration
Make tree removal permits valid for a certain period of time, such as a year.
Shorter, or longer, depending on length of project?
Construction-related tree permits expire when building permits expire (typically one year).
[edit] h. Performance Standards
i. During Construction
Require that a protective barrier be placed around the drip line of protected trees prior to land preparation or construction activities, to remain in place until construction activity is terminated. No equipment, chemicals, soil or construction materials may be placed within the barrier and any subsequent landscaping activities must be done with light machinery or by hand. Tree protection barriers must be at least four feet high, constructed of chain link, polyethylene laminar safety fencing or similar material, subject to city approval. The relevant city official has the authority to require any measures necessary to protect significant trees during construction.
Prohibit raising or lowering of grade more than 6" within the greater of the tree drip line or 6' of tree unless necessary, and all clearing within this distance must be done by hand.
Require that when six inches or more of fill is used where there are trees, tree wells shall be constructed at the dripline.
ii. Ongoing
The value of trees is in the services they provide over time. Thus any effective urban forestry program will ensure that measures are effective over time. Maintenance and protection measures can apply to trees or properties subject to a permit or to trees generally. Require trees to live more than 1 year, and require the applicant to replace those that don't.
Prohibit attaching signs or any objects to trees in such a way that could harm the tree; prohibits pouring anything near that tree that could harm it; fire or burning near the a tree; piling material that injures the tree; toping conifers; pruning that kills the tree or removes its usefulness as a buffer.
[edit] i. Project Evaluation
A successful program will adapt to changing conditions and outcomes. In order to do so the regulating authority must have information about how the program is functioning. The kinds of information that should be considered include the number of applications subject to chapter; the amount of acres or trees removed, preserved, and planted; payments into a tree replacement fund, expenditures from fund, amount remaining; frequency of non-compliance, citations issued, fines collected; some measure of the public attitude towards program.
[edit] VI. Mitigation
It is very important to remember that mitigation is seldom as effective as preservation. But when forest retention is not possible, mitigation provides a way to ensure that biodiversity values are not lost and in some cases allows them to be preserved in more valuable areas, such as streamside zones.
Mitigation requirements should allow for the full range of mitigation options (on and offsite, protection and planting, in-lieu fees) to provide flexibility to deal with a range of different permit situations. In addition, the permitting authority should have the option to select and/or approve appropriate mitigation options (including a combination of tactics) based on the local government's management goals and priorities, and the particular circumstances of each project.
Laws also prescribe where reforestation should take place, so that reforestation activities are aligned with community biodiversity conservation or other goals.
Prioritize reforestation of riparian buffers, woodland wetland buffers, forest corridors, floodplains, ridgelines, and contiguous forests.
[edit] a. Replacement
[edit] b. Payment in Lieu of Compliance
i. Calculating the Value of Trees
[edit] c. Tree Mitigation Banking
Tree mitigation banking is the preservation of existing trees to serve as mitigation credits or as a type of off-site mitigation. It is used to protect existing trees that are not otherwise protected by ordinance and would not otherwise be protected. For example, such a mitigation requirement can contribute to a larger restoration project.
[edit] VII. Notice
[edit] a. Public Notice and Hearing
Requires that notice of a permitted tree removal be posted [enough time to respond - see current Eugene code] in advance.
For removal of heritage trees, also require posted notice, mailed notice to property owners within 500 ft, and a hearing.
[edit] b. Reach-Back
In order to avoid having developers circumvent the requirements of the tree conservation ordinance by clearing land in advance, with the later intent for a development, have a reach back for a period of years.
This can be done through a notice provision or through the application of mitigation requirements to development applications that are filed within a certain number of years following substantial removal of forest cover.
This is especially applicable to any county land within the UGB which would be annexed to the city on development.
[edit] VIII. Fees
Require an application for tree removal to be accompanied by a certain fee. Fees charged should be sufficient to cover the administrative and maintenance costs involved in monitoring activities during construction and inspecting or conducting mitigation activities.
The fees that must be paid by single- family lot landowners should be in the range of $50 when an inspection must be performed.
[edit] IX. Enforcement and Penalties
Require that the permitting authority and a representative of the recognized neighborhood assocaition can visit or inspect the site during the permit approval or permit period.
[edit] a. Authority
i. Delegation
ii. Reporting Requirements
[edit] b. Enforcement Measures
Generally the first step is to issue a stop work order when a violation of the ordinance is suspected.
Next, suspension of the permit and any other approved permits due to violations of the ordinance or other enumerated transgressions.
They will also often withhold the certificate of occupancy until violations corrected and requirement of private owner to remove trees after being notified by public official of tree ordinance violations, within a certain time.
The owner can be made responsible for the costs.
[edit] c. Penalties
i. Civil Penalties
Allow for civil penalties when trees are unlawfully disturbed.
Increasing the fines for repeat offenders to deter intentional violations. In situations where no tree survey was done, it may not be possible to determine what trees were removed. For those situations, base the fine on the acreage cleared, using aerial photos to determine existence of tree cover. Make the fine high enough so that it would normally exceed the fine for clearing the individual trees, had a survey been done.
ii. Criminal Penalties
Only for extreme and willful cases.
iii. Replacement
iv. Penalty Recommendations
i. Civil Penalties
ii. Criminal Penalties
iii. Replacement
iv. Penalty Recommendations
[edit] X. Keys for Successful Introduction and Implementation of a new Tree Conservation Ordinance
[edit] a. Role of the Ordinance
Any successful attempt to protect trees must be part of a comprehensive management strategy. A tree conservation ordinance is not likely to meet community goals if it is an isolated effort. The ordinance is simply the legal framework for facilitating the management of the tree resources.
[edit] b. Management Strategy
i. Assessing the Resource
An assessment provides a baseline for measuring the results of management actions. Information that may be useful for management purposes includes: total number of trees classified by species, condition, age, size and location; problems situations, such as sidewalk damage, disease and pest problems, or hazardous trees, preferably linked to the specific tree data; and the amount of canopy cover by location.
Involving the community in the resource assessment process is a method for educating citizens about the issues related to urban trees and for building support for ultimate decisions.
ii. Reviewing Management
iii. Identifying Needs
iv. Establishing Goals
v. Selecting Tools
vi. Implementation
vii. Evaluation
[edit] Discussion
"Community support is crucial to the success of a tree conservation ordinance and it cannot be created by the ordinance drafters. Thus, the ordinance must reflect community standards in order to be successful. Community education and outreach are a first step to raising awareness of the importance of urban forests. After a strategic planning process, an ordinance should be drafted that flows from the strategic plan. The ordinance should be flexible enough to have community support but rigorous and detailed enough to accomplish the goals of urban forestry preservation."
[edit] Additions
- Block commercial logging inside the urban growth boundary.
[edit] References
Built up from... "Urban Tree Conservation: a White Paper on Local Ordinance Approaches", by Sandra S. Nichols, on Behalf of the Montgomery Tree Committee, Montgomery, Alabama, September 2007.
