Columbia County, FL Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

Sec. 26-122 defines hazardous lands as unoccupied or occupied property with an accumulation of trash, filth, excessive growth of weeds or noxious plants, or other litter that may cause disease or affect neighborhood health or welfare. The definition carves out forest or wild lands maintained for wood, forage, wildlife or protective cover, land essentially uninfluenced by human activity, and agricultural land whether cultivated or fallow, so working farmland and undeveloped timber tracts are not swept in. The land development regulation administrator, as enforcing official under Sec.

26-124, may inspect property on complaint or on their own initiative and issue written notice of a hazardous-lands violation under Sec. 26-125, describing the location, the nature of the violation and the sections violated. Where the violation is limited to hazardous lands rather than a building defect, the notice must set a cleanup deadline of not less than 10 days nor more than 30 days, a shorter window than the 10-to-90-day range given for building repairs. An aggrieved owner can appeal to the board of county commissioners within 14 days under Sec.

26-128. If the owner does not clear the land in time, the county may perform the cleanup and bill the owner, with unpaid costs becoming a special assessment lien under Sec. 26-129.