CA County Proposes Protecting 150-Year-Old Oak Trees

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA — Local leaders will meet this week to discuss amending the tree code to bolster protections for Santa Clara County's oldest oak trees — those more than 150-years-old.

According to county officials, the amendment is designed to serve a dual purpose of preserving historic and significant trees while codifying the rules and replacement requirements for other types of protected trees.

For old oaks, the ordinance would spell out how the county will estimate a tree's age and the exact thresholds that would require a special permit to remove.

"Because it's difficult to determine the precise age of a living oak tree, the amended ordinance would use a tree's size as a proxy for age," the county said in a news release. "The proposed amendment would require an administrative permit for the removal of oak trees with a circumference of 117 inches (9 feet, 9 inches) or greater, or a diameter of 37.5 inches or greater when measured at a height of 4.5 feet above the ground."

County officials acknowledged the "economic, environmental and aesthetic" importance of trees to the community and said creating better protections will also help protect property values, provide shade and prevent topsoil erosion.

The Department of Planning and Development will host a virtual public meeting about the proposal on Wednesday evening, which residents can participate in over Zoom.