Fairfield, CA Tree Protection: Heritage & Protected Trees (2026)

Many California cities use 'heritage tree' as a label for trees designated for special protection (often based on age, species, or size). Fairfield uses a broader functional category called 'protected trees' under Municipal Code Section 25.36 (Tree Conservation). The city's protected-tree definition has three prongs: (1) all trees located on public property (parks, streets, easements, city-owned land); (2) trees planted or preserved on private property as a condition of approval for a development project or shown on an approved landscape plan; and (3) certain species on undeveloped private property that exceed six inches in caliper or diameter at breast height (4.5 feet above ground). Once a tree is protected, its removal or substantial alteration requires a permit under Section 25.36, with the criteria and replanting requirements described above. Routine maintenance pruning that does not significantly alter the canopy is generally not regulated, but heavy crown reduction or topping of a protected tree is treated as removal for permit purposes. Unauthorized injury or destruction of a protected tree results in 3:1 mitigation (three inches of caliper replanted for every inch removed).