Carver County, MN Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)
Tree removal permit rules in Carver County, MN, sometimes called heritage tree, protected tree, or street tree ordinances, list which trees require a permit before you can cut them down.
Key Facts
- No-clear zone
- 50 feet from ordinary high water level
- Access strip exception
- up to 12 feet wide
- Bluff/steep slope clearing
- intensive clearing not allowed
- Applies to
- unincorporated shoreland areas only
- Violation classification
- misdemeanor, per day
- Enforcing authority
- County Attorney / County Board
Summary
In Carver County's unincorporated shoreland areas, clear-cutting natural vegetation within 50 feet of the ordinary high water level is prohibited outright. Only a strip no wider than 12 feet may be cleared to the water's edge for access, and intensive clearing is barred entirely on bluff impact zones and steep slopes.
In all shoreland areas the removal of natural vegetation is prohibited within 50 feet of the ordinary high water level except that a strip not to exceed 12 feet in width may be clear cut to the water’s edge to afford access to the water.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2025 S-20: Supplement contains: Local legislation current through Ord. 111-2025, passed 7-25-25).
Full Breakdown
005(B), and its Shoreland Overlay District rules apply directly to unincorporated shoreland parcels around the county's lakes and rivers. 125 sets a hard limit: removal of natural vegetation is prohibited within 50 feet of the ordinary high water level (OHW), with a single carve-out allowing a strip up to 12 feet wide to be clear cut to the water's edge for access. 124 layers on additional standards for the shore and bluff impact zones and steep slopes: intensive vegetation clearing is not allowed there at all, and only limited clearing of trees and shrubs, plus cutting, pruning, and trimming, is permitted to open a view to the water from the principal dwelling or to accommodate stairways, landings, picnic areas, access paths, livestock water areas, and permitted water-oriented accessory structures.
Even that limited clearing has conditions: screening of structures, vehicles, or their facilities as viewed from the water under summer leaf-on conditions cannot be substantially reduced, and existing shading of water surfaces along rivers must be preserved. Dead, diseased, or hazardous trees, limbs, or branches, and noxious weeds, may be removed anywhere in shoreland, bluff, and steep slope areas without those restrictions. 112. Both sections were adopted by Ord. 47 on 7-23-02 and amended by Ord. 97-2021 on 7-20-21.
Violations & Fines
The county's Environmental Services Department administers and enforces Chapter 152 under § 152.999. A violation of the shoreland vegetation rules is a misdemeanor punishable as defined by state law, and each day the violation continues counts as a separate offense. The County Attorney can bring an action to prevent, restrain, correct, or abate a violation, and the county may also use stop-work orders, notices of violation, after-the-fact permits, or corrective-action orders, with recoverable costs certified as a special tax against the property if unpaid.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I clear-cut trees down to the lake within Carver County's shoreland district?
Am I allowed to trim trees for a view of the lake from my house?
Can I remove a dead or hazardous tree in the shoreland area without a permit process?
Does this shoreland tree rule apply inside cities like Chaska or Waconia?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Carver County
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