Dixmont, ME Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)
Tree removal permit rules in Dixmont, ME, sometimes called heritage tree, protected tree, or street tree ordinances, list which trees require a permit before you can cut them down.
Key Facts
- Cleared opening in shoreline buffer
- No more than 250 square feet in the canopy
- Buffer width
- 100 feet from great ponds, 75 feet from other waters
- Cutting cap
- 40 percent of tree volume (4 inches or more) per ten years
- Hazard trees
- Removed without a permit after consulting the Code Enforcement Officer
- Footpath
- One footpath, no more than six feet wide
- Lot-wide cleared openings
- 25 percent of lot area or 10,000 square feet, whichever is greater
Summary
Dixmont has no town-wide tree ordinance. Inside the shoreland zone, the Shoreland Zoning Ordinance bars any cleared opening over 250 square feet in the shoreline buffer, caps cutting at 40 percent of tree volume in a ten-year period, and lets hazard trees come down without a permit after consulting the Code Enforcement Officer.
(a) There shall be no cleared opening greater than 250 square feet in the forest canopy (or other existing woody vegetation if a forested canopy is not present) as measured from the outer limits of the tree or shrub crown. However, a single footpath not to exceed six (6) feet in width as measured between tree trunks and/or shrub stems is allowed for accessing the shoreline provided that a cleared line of sight to the water through the shoreline buffer is not created. ... Notwithstanding the above provisions, no more than 40% of the total volume of trees four (4) inches or more in diameter, measured at 4 1/2 feet above ground level may be removed in any ten (10) year period. ... Q. Hazard Trees, Dead Trees and Storm-Damaged Trees (1) Hazard trees may be removed without a permit after consultation with the Code Enforcement Officer, provided the following requirements are met: ... (c) The code enforcement officer may require the applicant to submit an evaluation from a licensed forester or arborist before any hazard tree can be removed within the shoreland zone.
Full Breakdown
Dixmont regulates tree removal only through Section 15(P) and 15(Q) of its Shoreland Zoning Ordinance, adopted March 19, 2016. It applies within 250 feet of great ponds and freshwater wetlands and within 75 feet of streams. The town has no general zoning ordinance, so a tree on land outside those distances is outside this rule.
Table 1, item 3, covers clearing or removal of vegetation other than timber harvesting. It needs a Code Enforcement Officer permit in the Stream Protection district, a Code Enforcement Officer permit in the Resource Protection district, and no permit in the Limited Residential district. In Resource Protection abutting a great pond, there is no cutting of vegetation within the 75-foot shoreline buffer except to remove hazard trees.
Elsewhere, within 100 feet of a great pond or 75 feet of any other water body, tributary stream or wetland edge, Section 15(P)(2) preserves the buffer. No cleared opening can exceed 250 square feet in the forest canopy, though one footpath not over six feet wide is allowed. Selective cutting must leave a well-distributed stand of trees, measured by a point score in each 25-foot by 50-foot plot: 24 or more adjacent to a great pond and 16 elsewhere. Trees under 4 inches score 1 or 2 points by size, trees from 8 to 12 inches score 4, and trees of 12 inches or more score 8. No more than 40 percent of the volume of trees four inches or more in diameter can be removed in any ten-year period, and pruning is allowed on the bottom one-third of a tree. Beyond those distances, cleared openings for all purposes cannot exceed 25 percent of the lot area in the shoreland zone or 10,000 square feet, whichever is greater.
Section 15(Q) lets hazard trees, and storm-damaged trees, be removed without a permit after consultation with the Code Enforcement Officer, with native replacement trees required once a cleared opening passes 250 square feet in the buffer. Dead trees can be removed without a permit if they are dead from natural causes, and stumps stay in place.
Violations & Fines
The Code Enforcement Officer enforces the buffer and cutting limits. Under Section 16(I), a violation is deemed a nuisance, and the officer orders correction in writing, which can include restoration. The municipal officers then institute legal action, including injunctions and fines under 30-A M.R.S.A. section 4452. The printed note lists fines of not less than $100 nor more than $2500 per violation for each day, with a $5000 maximum in a resource protection district.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to cut a tree on my Dixmont property?
Can I remove a hazard tree near a Dixmont pond?
How much can I thin trees in the shoreline buffer?
Can I remove dead trees in Dixmont's shoreland zone?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dixmont
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