DuPage County, IL Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)
Tree removal permit rules in DuPage County, IL, sometimes called heritage tree, protected tree, or street tree ordinances, list which trees require a permit before you can cut them down.
Key Facts
- Governing section
- DuPage County Code § 8-129.6(3)
- Trigger
- Preserved tree destroyed, dying, or dead
- Replacement standard
- Match total caliper, minimum Code size
- Checkpoint
- Up to second landscape inspection
- Applies to
- Subdivisions, planned developments needing a landscape plan
Summary
Developers in unincorporated DuPage County must replant any preserved tree that dies or is destroyed, matching its caliper with new trees of the same minimum size.
Trees identified on the approved landscape plan for preservation which are inadvertently or intentionally destroyed, or are dying or dead, as determined by the County at any time up to and including the second landscape inspection, shall be removed, and replaced with new plantings in the following manner: a. Replace the total caliper of dead or dying trees with trees of the minimum size as specified by this Code or in accordance with subsection 8-129.2.4, "Alternative Compliance", of this article.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 14 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
Under the county's landscape regulations (Sec. 8-129.6), trees marked for preservation on an approved landscape plan that are inadvertently or intentionally destroyed, or found dying or dead by the County up through the second landscape inspection, must be removed and replaced. The replacement trees must match the total caliper of the lost trees at the minimum size the Code requires, and must go back in the areas the approved plan designated for preservation, unless alternative compliance under Sec. 8-129.2.4 applies. This applies to subdivisions, planned developments, and other developments that triggered a landscape plan under Sec. 8-129, not to a homeowner removing a tree on an existing single-family lot outside that process.
Violations & Fines
The County can withhold final landscape approval, hold the landscape bond, or require corrective replanting until replacement trees meeting the caliper and placement rules are installed and pass inspection.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this apply to a homeowner cutting down a backyard tree?
What size must the replacement tree be?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in DuPage County
Compare DuPage County to another location·View the Illinois landscaping rules overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.