Campbell County, KY Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)

042(A) of the Campbell County Code of Ordinances bars any governmental entity or other person from stripping, excavating, filling, or otherwise moving soil, trees, or other vegetation on land in the unincorporated county without first meeting all requirements of the zoning chapter and the county's subdivision regulations and then obtaining a permit from the County Planning and Zoning Commission's office. The rule carves out an exception only for minor changes, specifically the filling of small depressions and the removal of vegetation that is diseased or endangering public safety.

042(B), the Commission's office may issue the permit once it determines the resulting grade change or tree and vegetation removal will conform to all applicable provisions of the zoning chapter; the section is not meant to block normal excavation or grading that is merely incidental to constructing or altering a building for which a building permit has already been granted elsewhere in the chapter. Because the tree-removal permit sits inside the same section as the county's excavation and erosion-control standards, an applicant clearing significant tree cover as part of grading or development work should expect the Planning and Zoning Commission to review both the vegetation removal and the accompanying erosion and sedimentation controls together before signing off.