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Trees and plants are one of our Region’s greatest assets. Some plant species are protected according to the Nature Conservation Act 1992. For information on your legal obligations involving the protection of native plant species and laws surrounding the commercial use of protected species contact us.
Street and park trees are extremely valuable assets that are offered protection under Local Law 1 (Administration). It is considered an offence to prune, remove or interfere with our trees above and below ground. Unauthorised damage or removal of trees on Council owned land may result in penalties or prosecution.
You can assist us to protect our precious environment by:
The protection of trees and vegetation is governed by state government.
Where a property is heritage listed it is possible that the vegetation may be protected for historical purposes. This aspect is largely governed by the Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation (DETSI). For further information, or to check on the heritage status of a property, please refer to the DETSI website or call 137 468.
For information about removal of a tree removal as part of a development application, please contact us.
The Toowoomba Regional Planning Scheme identifies when development requires approval from us and lists the standards a required for application approval. Under the current Toowoomba Regional Planning Scheme our approval is not required to remove significant vegetation where there is no development proposed. At the time the Planning Scheme was prepared in 2010/2011, vegetation protection controls administered by the Queensland State Government were considered sufficient.
If you’re planning to clear vegetation on private property, visit the Queensland Government website to request a free vegetation management property report or map. This will identify which approvals, if any, are required.
There have been calls by community members to pass regulations to review the current 2.82 Environment Policy(PDF, 198KB) to prevent loss of significant vegetation that is not affected by a development application.
The preparation of the new planning scheme includes the review of all existing policies relating to development, including our Environment Policy. You can stay up-to-date with news via our media releases.
Council tree maintenance, removal and planting