Can existing trees be removed before a DA is approved?
Do not assume you can clear trees from the site just because the architectural plans show them being removed.
First establish whether the tree is protected. ACT Planning advises that existing regulated or registered trees need to be identified and that work affecting protected trees may require approval, an arborist’s tree survey/report and a Tree Management Plan (TMP).
If removal requires approval, that approval needs to be in place before the tree is removed. Importantly, having an approved Tree Management Plan by itself is not approval to remove a protected tree; the removal must be expressly approved by the relevant decision-maker.
For example, if a proposed dual occupancy is designed over the location of a regulated tree, the tree should not simply be removed in advance to clear the building footprint. The appropriate tree-removal approval pathway needs to be determined first.
Reference: Urban Forest Act 2023 – s 21, Application for approval of tree damaging etc activity – Urban Forest Act 2023 | HTML view
Short Answer
Not necessarily. Existing trees should not be removed before DA approval unless their removal is otherwise lawfully permitted. If a tree is protected under the Urban Forest Act 2023, the required approval must be obtained before it is removed.
Detailed Explanation
Under the Urban Forest Act 2023, s 21, a person may apply to the decision-maker for approval to undertake an activity in relation to a protected tree that would or may damage the tree or involve prohibited groundwork within its protection zone.
The current Urban Forest (Tree Management Plans) Guidelines 2025 (NI2025-364) further clarify that:
- a TMP may be required as part of a DA or other works approval;
- a TMP deals with management and protection of protected trees; and
- an approved TMP is not itself approval to remove a protected tree. Removal must be expressly authorised by the decision-maker.
ACT Planning's Trees and landscaping ? Existing trees guidance also requires consideration of existing regulated or registered trees and identifies tree surveys, arborist reports and TMPs as relevant documentation where applicable.
Therefore, the fact that a development DA has not yet been approved does not by itself determine whether a tree can be removed. The key question is whether removal of that particular tree independently requires approval under the applicable tree-protection legislation. If it does, the tree must not be removed until that approval has been obtained.
No minimum block size does not remove the need for planning assessment.
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