Stockton, CA Tree Protection: Protected Tree Species (2026)

SMC 16.72.245 and Chapter 16.130 enumerate the species treated as Heritage Trees: Quercus lobata (Valley Oak), Quercus agrifolia (Coast Live Oak), and Quercus wislizenii (Interior Live Oak). These three species are the Central Valley's signature native oaks and were once dominant in the riparian woodlands of the San Joaquin Delta. Stockton's ordinance protects them regardless of trunk size or DBH — there is no minimum diameter threshold, in contrast to many other California cities (e.g., Los Angeles requires a 4-inch DBH; Los Altos Hills requires 36-inch circumference). California's statewide oak protections are limited: the California Oak Woodland Conservation Act (Pub. Resources Code §§ 21083.4) requires CEQA mitigation for oak woodland conversions on projects subject to CEQA, but it does NOT generally apply to single private parcels. Other native trees common in Stockton — California sycamore, Fremont cottonwood, valley elderberry, willow — are not listed as protected by SMC 16.130, though sycamores and cottonwoods along the Calaveras River and Delta sloughs may be protected via riparian buffers under separate environmental review.