Can existing trees be removed before a DA is approved?
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.
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
Link on the answer: https://www.legislation.act.gov.au/View/a/2023-14/current/html/2023-14.html
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| Dual Occupancy Q&A | #542 | agrees | 01/09/2026 |