Public Tree Maintenance and Management

Young trees staked with wooden posts line a suburban street with parked cars and a sunny sidewalk.

What is a Public Tree?

Public trees are defined as all trees located on land that is owned or managed by the City of Parramatta Council. This includes trees situated within parks, reserves, bushland areas, streets, and nature strips throughout the Local Government Area (LGA). 

In addition to Council-managed trees, the NSW State Government also oversees public trees within the City of Parramatta, including those located in Parramatta Park and other state-managed precincts.

Submit a public tree maintenance request

Public trees we manage

Council manages approximately 52,000 trees throughout the Local Government Area (LGA) which play a vital role as part of our Urban Forest. 

Our public trees are valuable assets and play an essential role in making the City an attractive, healthy and sustainable city. The benefits of trees include:

  • helping to cool our city
  • improving air quality
  • creating and maintaining habitat
  • reducing stormwater runoff and
  • improving the streetscape and in turn property value. 

Tree Maintenance

All tree maintenance work is controlled and performed to the Australian Standard AS 4373-2007 Pruning of Amenity trees.

Council will undertake works for the following reasons:

  • Removal of major dead, dying or dangerous branches (dead wooding)
  • Pruning to allow clearance for pedestrian and vehicle access (clearance)
  • Formative pruning
  • Health, pest and disease management

Public and private trees that are located in the City of Parramatta Local Government Area are protected under Councils Parramatta Development Control Plan 2011 (DCP 2011) and as per DCP 2011 Council requires significant justification to remove or prune trees.

Find out about trees on your property or private land

The following diagram provides an example of the typical maintenance guidelines and requirements that Council implements.

Prescribed tree clearance illustration

*Please note that the clearances prescribed in the above diagram are the maximum clearances that Council may offer. There may be situations where tree size, shape and habit, or environmental and site constraints inhibit works to be completed in line with those defined.

Requests We Won't Action

We occasionally receive street tree requests that do not meet the criteria for action. These include pruning or removing street trees for the following reasons:

  • amenity views
  • solar access
  • where a tree is causing minor shading
  • to reduce leaf or fruit fall, sap drop, bird droppings or similar natural processes
  • to reduce branches overhanging a private property boundary
  • relating to minor structural damage to a footpath or driveway
  • relating to blocked pipes, unless the damage is proven to be serious and recurring. Root pruning, replacement of old dilapidated pipes, or use of root barriers may solve the problem (sufficient evidence would need to be provided)
  • relating to unsubstantiated fears about healthy trees failing
  • if a tree is dead or dying but provides habitat to native wildlife providing that the tree does not pose a significant risk to persons or property
  • where are concerns about bush fire hazard, where the land is not within bush fire prone land, as defined by Council’s Bush Fire Prone Land Map (removal of trees or other vegetation for bush fire hazard reduction is governed by the Rural Fires Act 1997).
  • Relating to any other reason that may violate laws and regulations that protect trees
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