Tree Protection in Santa Fe, NM (2026)
3 verified tree protection rules for Santa Fe, New Mexico, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Heritage & Protected Trees
Santa Fe's land development code requires preservation, relocation or replacement of 'significant trees,' deciduous trees six inches in caliper or larger and evergreens eight feet or taller, whenever a site is developed. No qualifying tree can be removed without sign-off from the land use director or, on city-owned land, the public works director.
Santa Fe Significant Tree Preservation Rule
Some RestrictionsSanta Fe City Code § 14-8.4(F)(5)(a),(c); definition of "Significant Tree," § 14-12.1
(a)The land use director may require the preservation, relocation or replacement of existing significant trees as provided in Subsection 14-8.4(B), except that the public works director may determine the requirements for significant trees located within public right-of-way, within city parks or on other land owned by the city...(c)No existing deciduous tree with a six (6) inch caliper or greate...
Protected Tree Species
Santa Fe singles out piñon among its significant trees for extra protection: developers must preserve, relocate or replace at least 40 percent of qualifying piñon trees on a site, and a preserved eight-foot piñon counts double toward the project's tree-replacement requirement elsewhere in the landscape code.
Santa Fe's Piñon Tree Preservation Quota
Some RestrictionsSanta Fe City Code § 14-8.4(F)(5)(b)
(b)A minimum of forty percent of piñon significant trees shall be preserved, relocated on site or replaced as specified in this Section 14-8.4. Piñon trees that are preserved or relocated on site and are a minimum of eight (8) feet tall shall substitute for two trees required elsewhere in this Section 14-8.4.
Parkway Planting
Santa Fe requires a landscaping plan for every roadway median and parkway strip before road construction proceeds. The plan must specify street trees, shrubs, ground cover and irrigation, and the developer must maintain and guarantee the plantings for at least one year under Section 14-9.2(L) of the Land Development Code.
Santa Fe Parkway Strip Landscaping Plans
Some RestrictionsSFCC 1987 § 14-9.2(L)
Landscaping plans shall be submitted for all roadway medians and all parkway strips. Landscaping plans shall include proposed location, size and type of vegetation or xeriscaping, including street trees, shrubs, ground cover or other proposed ground treatment in conformance with the city's landscaping regulations. Location of proposed landscaping shall meet sight distance and other safety crite...