Fort Collins, CO Tree Protection: Protected Tree Species (2026)

1. Landscape plans must identify every significant tree by location, species, size and condition and label the applicant's intent to remove, transplant or protect it. 0-inch caliper balled-and-burlapped canopy shade or ornamental trees, or 8-foot evergreens). If no suitable planting site exists within a half-mile (2,640 feet) of the site, the applicant may instead pay a mitigation fee set annually by the City Forester, due before Development Construction Permit issuance. Exemptions cover dead, dying or hazard trees, trees obstructing sight triangles, Siberian elm under eleven inches DBH, Russian-olive or ash under eight inches DBH, and volunteer-origin specimens of those species.

1(G), Tree Protection Specifications, requires a City Forester-approved tree protection plan before construction begins: barriers of orange construction or chain-link fencing at least four feet high, set back six feet from the trunk or half the drip line, whichever is greater; no equipment, material, debris or waste storage inside the fenced zone; no wires, signs or attachments fastened to a protected tree; and utility trenching within the root zone bored at a minimum 24-inch depth rather than open-cut. Because this is the Transitional Land Use Code, these standards apply only to applications filed before May 17, 2024.