Penn Hills, PA Landscaping Rules: Native Plants (2026)
Key Facts
- Trigger
- Streams with watershed over 10 acres
- Buffer width
- Minimum 35 feet from top of bank
- Requirement
- Protect and maintain existing native vegetation
- Applies to
- Riparian buffer easements in subdivisions, land development
- Penalty
- Up to $500 per violation, per day
Summary
Within a riparian buffer easement created during subdivision or land development along a qualifying stream, Penn Hills law requires existing native vegetation to be protected and maintained rather than cleared, under the Municipality's stormwater ordinance.
Existing native vegetation shall be protected and maintained within the riparian buffer easement.
(3) Whenever practicable, invasive vegetation shall be actively removed and the riparian buffer easement shall be planted with native trees, shrubs and other vegetation to create a diverse native plant community appropriate to the intended ecological context of the site.
(d) The riparian buffer easement shall be enforceable by the Municipality and shall be recorded in the appropriate County Recorder of Deeds office, so that it shall run with the land and shall limit the use of the property located therein. The easement shall allow for the continued private ownership and shall count toward the minimum lot area required by zoning, unless otherwise specified in the Municipal Zoning Ordinance.[1] [1] Editor's Note: See Part Twelve, Planning and Zoning Code.
(e) Any permitted use within the riparian buffer easement shall be conducted in a manner that will maintain the extent of the existing 100-year floodplain, improve or maintain the stream stability, and preserve and protect the ecological function of the floodplain.
(f) Stormwater drainage pipes shall be permitted within the riparian buffer easement, but they shall cross the easement in the shortest practical distance. Other structural stormwater management facilities are not permitted within the riparian buffer easement.
(g)
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4434863; v5 updated 2025-07-21; through 07-21-2025).
Full Breakdown
Penn Hills' Stormwater Management Regulations require a riparian buffer easement wherever a subdivision or land development plan encompasses a stream with a contributing watershed over 10 acres; the easement runs a minimum of 35 feet from the top of the stream bank on each side. Inside that easement, existing native vegetation must be protected and maintained: it cannot be cleared for landscaping, lawn, or other incompatible uses. The easement is recorded with the county Recorder of Deeds, runs with the land, and is enforced by the Municipality, though the property stays in private ownership and the buffer still counts toward the lot's minimum required area.
Violations & Fines
Violating the riparian buffer requirements is a summary offense under § 1058.36, punishable by up to $500 per day, and the Municipality can suspend or revoke SWM plan approval for noncompliance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I clear native plants from a Penn Hills riparian buffer?
Does this native-vegetation rule apply to every yard in Penn Hills?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Penn Hills
Compare Penn Hills to another location·View the Pennsylvania landscaping rules overview
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Native Plants in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Allegheny County handle native plants.